Shadows on the Cherry Blossom
by Ninja Fox of the Fire
Summary: SasuSaku: When Sasuke defeats Naruto and Sakura, still refusing to come home, Kyuubi sends Sakura back in time to go on the Sasuke Retrieval mission. He thinks that if she will, just maybe she can make it easier for them to bring him home... continued
1. Prologue: Kyuubi Can Control Time!

**Shadows on The Cherry Blossom**

Summary: When Sasuke defeats Naruto and Sakura again, still refusing to come home, Kyuubi sends Sakura back in time to go on the Sasuke Retrieval mission. He thinks that if she will, just maybe she can make it easier for them to bring him home...and back to his original self. [SasuSaku

I would like to dedicate this prologue to everyone who's ever reviewed for any of my stories at all. Some of the reviews didn't say great things about my past fics, but if it wasn't for all reviews I wouldn't be where I was today. So, thanks to everyone who's ever been involved with this account!: KairiSoraforever24, ShinjuUchiha, Lovely Spell, The Scarlet Sky, Chicken Yuki, FanfictonRedeemer, FanfictonEater, Aiko Enomoto, NuclearStoryteller, sn1ck3rDOOdl3, Bleeding Kunai, Billie Arm, and I-HATE-BAD-FANFICTIONS. Special thanks to my best friend and beta reader who currently doesn't have an account, so I'll just refer to her at Ninja Cat of the Light. Thanks to all of you!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto! Obviously, I'm not Masashi Kishimoto, so let's move on!

**Prologue: Kyuubi Can Control Time?!**

**Normal POV**

Naruto and Sakura finally found Sasuke again and they tried to convince him to come home. Of course, even after five years of being away, he refused to do so, resulting in a battle. Naruto was lying motionless at Sakura's feet, unconscious. He was the first one to go down because he took most of Sasuke's attacks to protect Sakura, even though Sasuke couldn't bring himself to kill his former comrades anyway. Sakura herself was currently struggling on her knees and elbows pleading with Sasuke to come home. She knew it wouldn't be long before she blacked out as well.

"Sasuke..."Sakura moaned weakly. "Why...don't...you...just...-I can't come home now! If I do, I'll never be able to kill him! Don't you understand?!" Sasuke cut her off.

"You...could...get...stronger...back...at...home..." she argued, as hard as it was for her to speak. "You're...all ready...one of the...strongest...ninja I...know..."

"But it's not good enough!" Sasuke said loudly. "He's stronger! Itachi's way stronger than you think!" And with that, he used his chakra to knock her out just as he did five years ago. Even so, before she slipped away out of consciousness, Sakura realized that he was going easy on her...a lot, by the amount of chakra he had in his hand...

* * *

Sakura woke up to Naruto crouching over her and a slight pain between her shoulder blades where Sasuke attacked her. 

"Sakura! Are you all right?" Naruto asked her in a slightly worried tone.

" I'm fine, Naruto," Sakura reassured him, making him let out a relieved sigh.

_Actually, he looks a lot worse than I feel. Sasuke apparently didn't go as easy on him, _Sakura thought. She now became the worried on. She'd grown really close to Naruto, but he was more like a brother to her. She had no romantic feelings for him, but his well-being meant more to her than anything in the world; that and bringing Sasuke home.

"Naruto, you should be concerned about yourself! Are _you_ okay?" Sakura inquired.

"Yeah, I've been worse," he said, standing up, trying to hold back a wince as he did so.

However, the state of Naruto's body not only affected himself, but Kyuubi as well. (Authoress's note: For those of you who don't know, Kyuubi's the Nine-Tailed Fox) It's kind of like how if your home suffers, so do you. For instance, if you have no running water, it makes it harder to live. Another example would be a parasite and a host, with Kyuubi being the parasite and Naruto being the host. If the host begins to die, the parasite suffers or dies as well. And right now, Kyuubi was suffering just as badly as Naruto. Naruto wasn't hurt very bad psychically, but combined with the mental pain he was going through because of Sasuke, Kyuubi was suffering pretty bad, and he was furious.

* * *

_Dammit! I am sick of going through this all the time because of Sasuke! As if being imprisoned in here isn't bad enough! _Kyuubi thought. _It's time I do something about it!_

And as soon as those thoughts passed through Kyuubi's mind, he took action. Even if he was imprisoned inside of Naruto, there was still one thing he could do to end his extra suffering caused by that Uchiha...

* * *

"Naruto?" Sakura called to him, shocked when he suddenly shot his head straight forward as a psychic does when seeing a vision. 

"Naruto, there is something I can do to help you get Sasuke back," Kyuubi's voice echoed in Naruto's mind. It was very rare for Kyuubi to communicate with Naruto at all, let alone help him, but this was for his own purposes. Yes, Kyuubi could talk to Naruto telepathically, and what he just "said" sure caught Naruto's interest.

"Yeah, I'm listening," Naruto "said" back.

"I have the power to reverse time," Kyuubi replied. "But only once can I do so. To help you get Sasuke back, I will reverse time for you. There is no way to stop Sasuke from leaving the village, but I think that if Sakura is allowed to go on the Sasuke Retrieval mission, she might can convince him to come home. I know she talked to him before the mission, but I think that she was getting to him, and he knew it. I think that is why he knocked her out." Kyuubi was a very wise demon, and he was pretty sure of what he just said. He also knew everything going on in Naruto's life. After all, being imprisoned in the boy's body gave him nothing better to do but watch...or sleep, which frankly, wasn't possible with that damn Uchiha stirring up shit all the time!

"Yes, I see, but why would _you _want to help _me_?" Naruto questioned suspiciously.

"I have my reasons," Kyuubi replied, dodging the question. "So, do you want for me to do this or not?" He began to grow impatient.

Naruto paused, thinking it over. _Kyuubi did avoid my question, but what could he possibly do to harm anyone? He's locked up in my body, for crying out loud! I'm not one to take the easy way out, but it's so damn hard to track Sasuke down, and he's gotten so strong! Sure Sakura and I have gotten stronger too, but his growth rate is unreal! On top of that, all of this is killing Sakura, and I've taken more than my fair share of sufferings as well..._

"Yes," Naruto answered at last. "But I want to talk to Sakura about it first."

"Very well. Before you do so, I will tell you more about what will happen," Kyuubi informed him. "When you give your word, I will send you back in time five years, soon before Sasuke leaves. However, I won't just send you and Sakura back, I will send everyone in the world back. It'll be as if the future you are living in right now never existed, because if you do as I say and insure that Sakura goes on the Sasuke Retrieval mission, then the future will be different; or at least your's and Sakura's will be. You also won't remember anything other than all your memories up until five years ago, as everyone else won't. But there is no need to worry, I will see to it that you and Sakura will remember what to do to get your friend back. That is all you need to know. When you are ready, give me the word."

"Understood," Naruto agreed to Kyuubi's terms, snapping out of the trance he was in while conversing with the fox without speaking a single word.

"Naruto? What just happened?" Sakura asked as she let out a relieved sigh when the blank stare in his eyes faded away.

"Sakura, I think Kyuubi has a way for us to get Sasuke back," Naruto said shakily, excited at this news.

"What do you mean?" Sakura asked, hoped that whatever Naruto was talking about would bring her true love back to her.

Naruto told her everything Kyuubi informed him, not missing a single detail. When he was done, Sakura was both astounded and a bit worried, but she agreed to get Kyuubi to reverse time; she would do anything to get her beloved Uchiha back home.

As soon as he got her approval, Naruto focused his mind and sent his thoughts to Kyuubi, informing him to reverse time now.

Kyuubi was ready to do so, leaving these words to echo is Naruto's ears before everyone in the world was sent back in time; and these words were: "Secret demon power: time reversal!"

* * *

Authoress's note: Yeah, I know, it was a bit short, but my other chapters will be longer. Besides, this is just the prologue, and prologues usually are shorter than most other chapters in books! . **REVIEW OR ITACHI WILL HUNT YOU DOWN!!!!!** Oh, and catch the next chapter next Saturday!!!! One last thing! I will also be doing chapter dedications! I will dedicate the next chapter to the **15th REVIEWER!!!!** I sure hope I can get that many reviews in a week's time, but if not, there just won't be a dedication! And that would be sad...:(...Anonymous reviews are gladly accepted! I'll dedicate it to anonymous reviewers too! Hopefully you enjoyed my fic, but if not, I don't mind constructive criticism. **FLAMEZ WILL DEFINITELY NOT BE APPRECIATED!!!!** Thanks for reading, and **REVIEW!!!!!**


	2. Chapter 1: If She Remembered

Shadows on the Cherry Blossom

Summary: When Sasuke defeats Naruto and Sakura again, still refusing to come home, Kyuubi sends Sakura back in time to go on the Sasuke Retrieval mission. He thinks that if she will, just maybe she can make it easier for them to bring him home...and back to his original self. [SasuSaku

Disclaimer: Dammit! Wishing on a star didn't work! I still don't own Naruto!

Aw man...I only got 6 reviews...so I don't get to do the 15 review dedication...So, I guess the dedication goes to Dreamergirl92813 and Ryn729 for being the first to review. I bet you're wondering how they could both be the first to review, huh? Well, Dreamergirl92813 was really first, but I had to delete the fic to fix a problem, so her review doesn't show up. When I posted it back, Ryn729 was first, so thanks to them and everyone else! I got a lot of alerts and favorites for the prologue, so I hope next time I can get more reviews so I can do the dedication. If not, the next dedication goes to my mom...which would be REALLY SAD...:(

Chapter 1: If She Remembered...

Normal POV

The last thing Naruto and Sakura saw was a flash of light and _bam!_--they were back in their twelve-year-old bodies, forgetting everything that ever happened in the future.

Naruto was heading home from Icharu's, ready to hit the hay. He walked across the deserted streets in the dead of the night until reaching his home, and more importantly, his bed.

**Authoress's Note: The next couple of scenes come directly from the series because it's back in time, but the story is about to take a turn! Don't give up on it!**

Sakura, on the other hand, started to slowly walk home, but her thoughts stopped her dead in her tracks. _He's been strange lately...and that mark...Orochimaru...Sasuke...SASUKE!_

Sakura couldn't take it any longer. Something was wrong with Sasuke,**(A/N: Hasn't there always been??? I mean, he has more problems than a pregnant woman!! But I still like his character all right...Okay, back to the fic!! Sorry!!)** and she was going to get to the bottom of it! She had to protect him! She darted down the stone-paved streets and though the gates of the Uchiha mansion. She burst into his room--the only room he ever was in other than the kitchen--and found no one, not even anything there but an unmade bed and an overturned picture. Almost as if her feet guided her there, Sakura ran like lightning down to the path outside of the Hidden Leaf Village. She stood there, until just minutes later, the raven-haired boy appeared. Sakura's eyes trailed to the backpack he had on his shoulders.

**Authoress's Note: I think it's time for some music. How about **_**Shadow of the Day **_**by Linkin Park? I think it fits this scene pretty well.**

_I close both locks below the window, _

_I close both blinds and turn away, _

_Sometimes solutions aren't so simple,_

_Sometimes goodbye's the only way._

"Sasuke..." Sakura whispered so softly that Sasuke's "ninja trained" ears could barely make out what she said.

"What are you doing out here this late at night? You should go to bed," Sasuke said with no emotion as he walked right past her without even glancing in her direction. Tears began to stream down Sakura's face.

_And the sun will set for you,_

_The sun will set for you,_

_And the shadow of the day,_

_Will embrace the world in grey,_

_And the sun will set for you._

"This is the only path out of the Leaf Village," Sakura told Sasuke as if he didn't all ready know that. She knew he did, but she prayed he was just lost. She prayed he wasn't about to do what she suspected he was doing. Sasuke didn't respond to her comment. Her body trembed as she continued to sob. "Why don't you ever tell me anything, Sasuke? Why do you always choose to be alone? You said that being alone is painful before, so why do you choose to live that way?" she cried, choking on her own tears.

"I have my own path to follow, as do you," he responded flatly.

_In card and flowers on your window,_

_Your friends all plead for you to stay,_

_Sometimes beginnings aren't so simple,_

_Sometimes goodbye's the only way._

"You know, this is the place where it all started, you and me...and Naruto...and Kakashi sensei," Sakura continued on, regardless of his meaningless comment. "We all started doing missions and training. It was really hard back then, but more than anything...it was fun!"

Sasuke just stood there, with his back still to her.

Sakura stammered on, her tears pouring to the ground now. "But you probably still hate me, just like you did the last time we were both here, on that bench," she said, pointing to a concrete bench inches away from where they were standing.

"I don't remember us being here together before," Sasuke replied, making it clear that Sakura meant nothing to him. But the question is, did she?

At this Sakura sobbed even harder, making what appeared to be a rainstorm erupt from her eyes. But she was strong--she was. Sakura was sick of people always trying to protect her. It made her feel useless. She wasn't useless. But wouldn't you cry if your true love left you, making you think that you meant absolutely nothing to them?

_And the sun will set for you,_

_The sun will set for you, _

_And the shadow of the day,_

_Will embrace the world in grey,_

_And the sun will set for you._

Sakura began to scream as Sasuke took a couple more steps outside of the Hidden Leaf Village. "Don't go, Sasuke! I'm so in love with you I can barely stand it! If you go, you'll put me in the same solitude that you're in!"

"I knew it!" he uttered, narrowing his eyes. "I'm on a path that no one can follow. Not Naruto...and not you."

"No, Sasuke! Please stay here with me! If you do, every day will be a joy, I swear! Revenge won't make anyone happy, but if you can't stay, take me with you! I'll help you get your revenge!" Sakura begged him, drenched in her own tears. Even so, he still continued to walk away.

"Don't go!" Sakura cried desperately. "If you do, I'll cry and scream and"---"One thing hasn't changed about you; you're still annoying," Sasuke cut her off. He then knocked her out whispering a gentle "thank you" as he did so. He laid her on the bench and walked through the gate out of the village. He didn't intend on returning.

_And the shadow of the day,_

_Will embrace the world in grey,_

_And the sun will set for you._

_And the shadow of the day, _

_Will embrace the world in grey,_

_And the sun will set for you._

**Authoress's Note: Once again, the song lyrics aren't mine of course, they are Linkin Park's. The song is called **_**Shadow of the Day.**_

If Sakura remembered experiencing this moment of tragedy with Sasuke the first time and knew she was reliving it, she would be in an even bigger mess. But the good thing is, she didn't.

* * *

Two jounin walked down he stone paths of Konoha carrying a stack of books as part of the errands they were running for Tsunade, when who were they to stumble upon but the pink-haired girl lying unconscious on a bench at the crack of dawn?

"Uhn?" one of them grunted in surprise, setting down the books so that he could carry her bridal-style to the hospital. The other picked up the stack and placed it on top of his own, making the stack nearly twice his height. It's a good thing he was strong...

The first jounin left Sakura in the care of the rather concerned nurse, and the two jounin departed on their way back to the Hokage's office.

The nurse was about to leave Sakura's room when she saw the young girl's green eyes open. The nurse, whose name was Mikan, walked hastily to Sakura's side as the girl mumbled with panic in her eyes, "S-Sasuke left the village! He went to Orochimaru! Somebody...help!"

" Sasuke Uchiha?" Mikan inquired with surprise.

"Yes!" Sakura said as she shot up in the hospital bed.

Mikan bolted out the door with Sakura following right behind her.

Another jounin happened to be walking by, so Mikan ran up to him and said solemnly, "Sasuke Uchiha left our village late last night. It is believed that he is going to Orochimaru. Tell the Hokage!

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, the jounin took off running straight towards Tsunade's office, for he was well aware of the importance of his message. He brushed past the two other jounin from before, busted through Tsunade's office doors, and cried out in a tone as urgent as his message, "Sasuke Uchiha left the village late last night! There is good reason to believe he went to Orochimaru!"

"Are you sure?" Tsunade asked, hoping that it wasn't true.

The jounin nodded his head vigorously.

"Very well," she said with a sigh. "Can you please summon Shikamaru Nara to my office? He should be at his home."

The jounin took off just as he did before, not stopping until he reached the door to Shikamaru's house. He then knocked on the door hastily for Mrs. Nara to answer it a few seconds later.

"Yes?" she asked the panting jounin of his business there.

"The Hokage has summoned Shikamaru to her office," he explained.

"Just one moment," Mrs. Nara replied as she disappeared into the house. She stepped into the doorway of the kitchen and told her sold that he was summoned to Tsunade's.

"Wha?" he grunted, wondering why _he_ was the one being summoned. He stood up from the table, and then looked down at his unfinished breakfast. _Huhn...I haven't even finished my breakfast yet and I all ready have a job to do. What a drag!" _Shikamaru thought with exasperation as he walked outside to meet up with the jounin. The two walked back to Tsunade's office without speaking a word.

When the two shinobi arrived in Tsunade's office, she dismissed the jounin and then ushered Shikamaru to her desk. "It has been confirmed that Sasuke Uchiha has left our village late last night. He is going to join forces with Orochimaru." Tsunade paused, letting this disturbing news get taken in by Shikamaru.

_Wow...Sasuke's always been some one I've kind of looked up to. I just don't understand why some one like him would go to the likes of Orochimaru, _the boy thought.

"Shikamaru, I want you to gather as many skilled genin as you wish and bring Sasuke back here. As a chounin, you shall lead them, of course." Tsunade commanded.

"Unh! Why can't you send More skilled ninja to take on this mission?" he replied, shocked to be given such an important mission with a ranking as low as chounin.

"You know I can't do that!" she snapped. "Most of the jounin and ANBU are all ready out on missions! If I send any more away, we won't be able to defend ourselves if there's an attack on the village!"

"All right..." Shikamaru agreed as he started to walk out of the office.

"Shikamaru, there is but one particular ninja I wish for you to take on this mission..."

"Who is it?" he asked.

* * *

Shikamaru now stood in Naruto's doorway. The blonde haired boy came rushing out, fuming at Sasuke's latest actions, and none too quietly.

_He is such a loud mouth! _Shikamaru thought to himself. _He's giving me a headache! Why'd the woman want me to take this goof along?_

Shikamaru walked toward Choji's house without saying another word to the blonde haired ninja who was right on his heels.

Shikamaru stopped at Choji's front door, knocked, and waited for some one to answer it. When they didn't, he sat down, sighed, and opened a bag of barbecue chips.

At this, Naruto started screaming in frustration, " Why are you eating at a time like this?!"

The chounin responded by eating a few more chips. He took the last chip out of the bag when Choji's door bolted open and Akamaru leaped into the air beside Shikamaru's head! Choji grabbed the chip, popped it in his mouth, and said, "I will never let anyone else have the last bite!" Akamaru fell to the ground in disappointment and Kiba appeared.

"I asked Choji and Kiba to come with us," Shikamaru explained to Naruto, who was now even more frustrated. "So I guess unless we run into anyone else, this is our squad since we don't have much time before Sasuke gets too far away for us to catch up."

The four boys and one dog began their walk out of the village. Just as they neared the gates, Neji and Rock Lee, who was still on crutches because of his operation approached them.

"Where are the four...I mean five of you going in such a rush?" Neji asked, noticing Akamaru.

"Sasuke left the village to go join up with Orochimaru, and we're going on a rescue mission to get him back!" Naruto replied.

"Sasuke left the Hidden Leaf Village?" Lee asked, as surprised as everyone else.

"Yes," Shikamaru replied. "Neji, would you like to come with us on the mission? We need all the help we can get."

Neji shot a concerned look at Lee, but agreed with a nod.

Lee's eyes got a little misty. He was thinking pretty hard.

"Lee, it is up to you. You do what you must do," Neji replied when Lee shot him a questioning look. Stunning them all, for once in his life, Lee walked away from a mission, from training, from anything of the sort. It pained them all to see it, but at the moment, Lee's body couldn't take it, and they had no idea just how badly he wanted to go. They had no idea how much it pained him to walk away. But he did, and that was proof that his self-discipline had grown more than anyone imagined. All though no one realized it at the time, at that moment, Rock Lee was stronger than he had ever been.

Just as they were about to form a plan and then take off, Sakura came running down the path, calling to Naruto. She stopped in front of them, with a worried look on her face. She should be worried, Sasuke was in the darkness, and no one knew it more than she did.

"Sorry, Sakura, Tsunade said you've done all that you can do. It's in our hands now," Shikamaru said, as if reading her thoughts.

"I respect the Hokage, but she's wrong. I can be of help on this mission. You need another ninja, and I know Sasuke better than anyone on this team. I can help. Let me come or I'll just follow you to Sasuke," Sakura replied with defiance.

"Hunh...this is such a drag!" Shikamaru sighed with exasperation as he pulled at the skin on his neck as people do when in a fix. "I guess you can come...but mostly because if you follow us, the enemy could ambush us easier."

"Sakura, you'd better be careful though! I'll look out for you!" Naruto replied with concern, secretly thinking she was too weak to go on this mission.

"I can take care of myself, Naruto. It's okay," she said, slightly annoyed because she knew everyone thought she was too weak. She wasn't weak!

"All right. We need to form a plan, and fast." Shikamaru commanded.

"Okay!" they all said in unison.

To be continued in Chapter 2!!!

**Authoress's Note: I know, like I said, I took most of the scenes in this chapter directly from the series but I thought it would be best to pick up from the time he left. So, don't give up on this fic!! I hope you still enjoyed this chapter! The next chapter will be very different than the series. As for the dedication, the 15th reviewer will get it since I only got 6 for the first chapter. Hopefully, I'll get even more than 15. Sooo, REVIEW OR OROCHIMARU WILL...WILL...IT DOESN'T MATTER WHAT HE'LL DO! HE'S OROCHIMARU! EVERYTHING HE DOES IS UNENJOYABLE AND PURE TORTURE TO OTHERS!! SO,**** REVIEW!!!!!**

**Thanks for reading this chapter! Next Saturday is update time!!!!!!! Hopefully...if not, the next Saturday! I may need the extra time! Spread my fic around! Tell your friends!! Go my fic! Okay, it's not that good...anyway, if you think it is you can do that, if not, then you won't anyway...xD!**


	3. Chapter 2:The Sasuke Retrieval

Shadows on the Cherry Blossom

Summary: When Sasuke defeats Naruto and Sakura again, still refusing to come home, Kyuubi sends Sakura back in time to go on the Sasuke Retrival mission. He thinks that if she will, just maybe she can help them bring him home....and back to his original self. (SasuSaku)

Disclaimer: Damn! I even wished on my birthday that I would own Naruto, but I still don't! Now _that's _out of the way!

Authoress's Message: Guys, I am ssooooooo sorry!! This chapter was promised like 6 of months ago, but I just couldn't get it up in time. I've been so busy! I really will try to get the next chapter up sooner! I am so sorry. This is the chapter where the twist finally comes in. It starts off a little similar to the episode in the series, but it really differs about mid-chapter. Thanks for being so patient. I really hate waiting for updates too, so I feel bad about making you readers wait for so long. And I did get a 15th reviewer for the dedication! **This chapter is for you, LunaxJonah!**

Chapter 2: The Sasuke Retrieval Mission Begins!(again)

The wind rushed through Sakura's face as she traveled high-speed though the air in a straight line through the forest, jumping from tree to tree. Shikamaru had arranged for Kiba to take the lead, placing himself behind the boy with such a keen nose. Next in the line was Naruto, followed by Choji. Neji was at the end of line. Sakura traveled just ahead of Neji.

As much as she wanted to just fly by and pass Choji, even everyone else, and rush to Sasuke, she had to restrain herself. After all, she had no way of tracking him without Kiba and Akamaru to follow his scent and she could get ambushed. If any of them strayed from the others, their chances of success,even survival, would be greatly lessened. Besides, the squad she was in was well-formed, and everyone had something of their own they could bring to help with the mission that was totally unique. Somehow she just had to believe that they could bring Sasuke back to the Leaf Village. Sakura just seemed to know that their mission would be a success. She just wanted to bring her loved one and commrad back to safety.

The pink haired kuinochi pushed her troubling thoughts away and focused on moving forward even more quickly.

But the worries still came rushing back.

_Can we reach him fast enough?_

_**Focus on moving, Sakura! **_Inner Sakura mentally scolded.

_What are Orochimaru's plans for him anyway?_

_**Stop worrying and just move faster!**_

Sakura's rather agrivating and confusing conflicts going on in her own mind ended ereuptly as Shikamaru stopped and leaped onto a nearby tree branch without a sound. Kiba doubled back and jumped onto a branch beside Shikamaru. The rest of the squad did the same on command.

"Have the rest of you noticed those four down below?" Shikamaru asked.

They all indicated that they had by nodding, except for Sakura, who was too distracted by her own thoughts. Who could really blame her though? She looked down and saw three men and one woman all dressed in Orochimaru's clothing-a white shirt with a purple rope belt and dark pants. There were only those four though............._Where was---?_

"But where's Sasuke? Isn't he supposed to be with them?" Naruto asked a little too loudly.

"Lower your voice! Do you want them to attack us?" Kiba hissed.

"Sasuke isn't with them. Even my Byakugan can't sense his outline," Neji mumbled.

"Sasuke's scent is faint, isn't it, Akamaru?"

"Aarf! Aarf!" (Transation: Yep)

Shikamaru chimed in, "Well, they sure have gone to a lot of trouble just to kill him. I find it unlikely that he is dead. The only thing we can do at this point is ambush Orochimaru's bitches and try to find out what's up."

"I'm game,"Kiba obeyed, with similar comments coming from the rest of the squad at about the same time.

"All right,"Shikamaru continued. "We are going to sneak down and take cover on the ground. When I give this signal"-he silently slid a strand of his chakra into the form of a lizard-"we are going to all charge and take our enemies by suprise. Of course, it's quite obvious that their fighting levels surpass ours' greatly, but we outnumber them as well. Keep in mind that the goal of this attack is not to defeat the enemies;it is to find out what they've done with Sasuke."

Shikamaru quickly but silently darted behind a bush on the ground, and Neji, Choji, Naruto, Kiba, and Sakura followed his lead and took cover near him. They remained as still as a stone during the fifteen seconds before Shikamaru gave his signal. As soon as the five squad members saw the black chakra lizard, they sprung into action with Shikamaru only about a second behind them. Naruto jumped up and charged through the air at the Sound ninja with grey hair and narrow eyes with four of his shadow clones behind him. They all pounded on their enemy from different directions.

Kiba flung himself towards the only girl Sound ninja with Akamaru at his side. The boy and his canine companion pummeled the witch to the ground.

Choiji and Sakura worked together to take the most heavyset man of the gang down. After Choiji knocked the ninja down with Human Boulder, Sakura pinned him down with her thrown kunai.

Shikamaru caught the tanned Sound Ninja with black spiky hair with Shadow Possesion Jutsu while Neji scanned the area with his Byakugan for any sign of Sasuke. It was then that he noticed the coffin. He could see an outline in it, but whether it was Sasuke's or not, he could not tell. Would the Sound Ninja really have gone to this much trouble just to kill the Leaf Village Genin?

The woman of the gang pummeled Kiba and Akamaru off of her and the heavyset ninja broke free of the kunai and fought past Sakura and Choiji. The grey-haired ninja fought off Naruto's Shadow Clones and Naruto himself. The woman then punched Shikamaru hard in the face which broke the spiky haired ninja free of Shadow Possession Jutsu.

"Well, well, what do we have here?" the woman spat. "Genin trying to save their commrad no doubt?"

**Authoress's Note: **Shikamaru is actually Chounin, Tayuya. You bitch! xD!

"Well, we don't have time for them to get in our way. We have got to bring Orochimaru his new vessel in time. I'll stay behind and keep this kiddos busy," the heavy set Sound Ninja informed his fellow teammates. He then trapped Naruto, Sakura, Shikamaru, Choiji, Neji, and Kiba in a circle made out of earth, or rather, sand.

Each member of the squad tried using their own jutsu to break though one of the walls, but all to no avail. Every time they made a hole in the wall, it filled back up before they could escape.

" These walls are made entirely out of powerful chakra," Neji announced. "That is why we can't break through it. Of course, that ninja outside is controlling it, so if we can figure out where he is positioned, we can probably break out by attacking the side of the wall that is opposite of his position, which is his weak point."

Shikamaru tricked the Sound Ninja into speaking, revealing his position on the wall. Choiji then attacked the side of the wall opposite of the ninja's position. The hole in the wall filled up rather slowly, so the whole squad mangaged to escape.

The enemy realized what had happened, so he stopped using his jutsu and blocked the Sasuke Retrival Squad's path.

"You may have escaped my trap, but you won't escape from me!" the heavyset ninja known as Jirobo growled.

It was then that Choiji decided, "Go on without me you guys, and catch up with Sasuke! I can hold this guy off!"

"Ok. Just be careful. This guy is tough!" Shikamaru was reluctant to leave his teammate and best friend behind, but it was for the sake of the mission. Sakura, Naruto, Neji, Kiba, and Shikamaru continued on their pursuit of the three remaining Sound Ninja.

"Well that ambush totally failed! All of that work and we still don't know where Sasuke is!" Naruto fumed.

"Actually we do," Neji said with a calm look on his face. "The Sound Ninja are carrying a coffin with them. There was a human figure in it, but my Byakugan couldn't make it out. My guess is that they are keeping Sasuke in there."

Panic shot through Sakura's entire body. "You don't think that they?!"--"I still think that they are going to too much trouble just to kill him. Something fishy is going on and the only way we are going to get to the bottom of it is to catch up to those ninja,"Shikamaru cut her off.

The squad continued following the Sound Ninja's scent trail with Akamaru and Kiba's help in silence. Once again, they reached the three ninja and were stopped.

"These Genin again? How did they manage to get past Jirobo? Hnph. It looks like there is one less than there was before though," the female ninja pondered.

"Well they won't be able to get past me," the dark-skined ninja declared, passing the coffin on to his grey-haired commrad. "You guys go on ahead."

Sticky material that closely resembled a spider web shot out of the ninja's hands, aimed at Shikamaru and Naruto. They were caught in the web. Using his Byakugan, Neji realized that the web was made entirely out of chakra, making an escape impossible without being able to see the chakra flow like he could. Helping Naruto and Shikamaru escape, Neji stayed behind to fight the Sound Ninja and let the others move on.

The squad reached the remainder of the Sound Ninja again. Kiba stayed behind to hold off the grey-haired ninja. And after catching up with the final ninja, Shikamaru took on the female sound ninja, telling Sakura and Naruto to go on and retrieve the coffin, which the grey-haired ninja left in a field not far away, being unable to pass it on to the woman.

The remainder of the retrieval squad, Naruto and Sakura, quickly made their way to the field where the coffin was. Both were very anxious to reach the other member of Squad 7.

Sakura couldn't restrain herself anymore. Breaking into a sprint, she darted towards the field.

_Just be okay, Sasuke!_

Her feet thundered as she ran.

_Just be alive!_

She had almost reached the coffin.

_Just come back home!_

Naruto had caught up to her, and they were only steps away from the coffin. They were just about to open it when they heard feet hitting the ground behind them and spun around to see another one of Orochimaru's minons running towards them holding a bone as a sword. He had silver hair in a ponytail and his presence gave off intimidating vibes.

"Go, Sakura! I'll hold him off! Take the coffin!" Naruto commanded.

Sakura snatched up the coffin and ran like lightning towards the opposite direction of the Leaf Village. She couldn't head back now for the rather large chance there were more Sound Ninja waiting for her squad to return so that they could take the coffin back. She couldn't take on a number of the ninja alone. So she just kept on running. When she was a good distance away from the field where Naruto and the ninja were, she stopped and opened the coffin.

_Please, just---_

It was empty. Sakura fell to her knees in despiration. Where was Sasuke now?

But there was still hope.

_He could have escaped._

________________________________________________________________________________

_About an hour earlier in Orochimaru's current hideout._

"GGGGGGGGGGGGAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Orochimaru screeched in pain. His arms were burning like fire and he couldn't take the pain any longer. "The......others....getting Sasuke....have........failed. I'll have.........to get........a.........new...........vessel now. But..........I still...........want...........Sasuke..............He.........will be..............the next vessel.............."

"Would you like me to fetch him now, my Lord?" Kabuto offered.

"NO! I WANT YOU TO FETCH HIM NEXT GENERATION!" the snake demon exploded.

"Understood. I'll be on my way."

"Look..............for a.................coffin...............................He'll.........be in it.......................................Don't open it........................................If..........you............do.......................he could die....................It'll open.............when...............he's ready.............................for it.........to......................."

________________________________________________________________________________

_Naruto's POV_

_What is this guy?_ Naruto thought. _He can use his bones........as weapons?_

"You don't stand a chance against me," his opponent sneered. "You might as well dig a whole in the ground and get in it. Save me some trouble."

"WHEN THIS IS OVER, YOU'RE GOING TO BE THE ONE IN THE GROUND, NOT ME!" Naruto bellowed with rage. "Multi Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

The ninja quickly took out the shadow clones with his bone, or rather, sword.

_This guy's too fast for me......._

Naruto saw the bone swinging toward him and he quickly sprung into defense when there was a flash of green and---

_Hey, I've seen that jumpsuit before!_

"Bushy Brows?!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Yes, it is I, Rock Lee, the Hidden Leaf Village's Handsom Devil!"

"What are you doing here?"

"Watch out, Naruto!" Rock Lee warned just in time for Naruto to counterattack his opponent.

"I am here to help bring Sasuke back," Rock Lee replied moments later. "Get going and help Sakura rescue Sasuke. I can take this guy."

"Okay, "Naruto decided, slowly jogging off. "But I'm warning you, this guy uses his bones as swords."

"I got it," Rock Lee acknowledged with a suprised look on his face.

________________________________________________________________________________

_Sakura's POV_

Sakura looked around for any sign of Sasuke. No luck. She saw a familar figure, one she'd hoped she'd never see again, only a few yards away. He hadn't spotted her; Kabuto hadn't.

_He's probably looking for the coffin. What to do?If he sees the coffin's empty, or if it's too light when he picks it up, he'll know Sasuke's escaped. Then, he'll capture him again. I can't let that happen!_

Sakura's next thought suprised even herself.

_I should get in the coffin so that Sasuke will be safe._

Even though she could suffocate in that coffin, she didn't care as long as Sasuke would be okay. Even if it meant going into Orochimaru's hideout herself, she didn't care. Her determination drowned out her fear.

Sakura got into the coffin and closed the lid.

Not long after, she heard footsteps draw near and she felt herself be lifted up within the coffin by hands that she knew were Kabuto's. It was her time to stop being a hendrience. She was going to be the one to save her teammate from harm this time. Her only wish was that she could just see her Sasuke-kun again. But if not, at least he'd be okay.

________________________________________________________________________________

_Naruto's POV_

Naruto sprinted through the open land and into another forest, sides heaving. There was a figure in the distance--Kabuto!

"How did that jerk-!" Naruto hissed to himself when he realized that the grey-haired weasel was carrying the coffin. And what was more was that Naruto spotted a strand of pink hair poking out of the coffin. "Sakura!" his scream came out in more of a muted whisper.

He then heard running, and rotated his body in the direction of the sound. That familar navy blue shirt met his crystal blue eyes.

Naruto broke into a sprint towards that navy shirt, within it of course, was Sasuke Uchiha. He didn't have a choice;it was his mission to retrieve Sasuke and bring him back to Konoha. Even so, he shuddered knowing that dead or alive-he prayed alive-Sakura was being taken into Orochimaru's clutches, and he didn't have time to wonder why.

________________________________________________________________________________

**CLIFFHANGER!!!!!!! OOOOHOOHOOO, I AM EVIL, AREN'T I?! **I hope you guys liked it, and I'm going to try to get the next chapter up much faster. I once again apologize that this update took so long!! **I'M SORRY!!!!!** (I'm a bit melo-dramatic aren't I? xD!)

**PLEASE REVIEW AND THE NEXT DEDICATION GOES TO THE 25TH REVIEWER!!!**

Thanks for reading and reviewing! Ja ne!

-Ninja Fox of the Fire


	4. Chapter 3: An Ambush and a Brawl

**Shadows on the Cherry Blossom**

Summary: When Sasuke defeats Naruto and Sakura again, still refusing to come home, Kyuubi sends Sakura back in time to go on the Sasuke Retrieval mission. He thinks that if she will, just maybe she can help them bring him home....and back to his original self. (SasuSaku)

Disclaimer: Wishing at 11:11 didn't work either.....My quest to own Naruto fails yet again....:( I guess I'll have to settle for simply _reading _the manga....

Authoresses's Message: Although I did promise to get this chapter up sooner, I know I didn't. I'm sorry!! I'm so slow when it comes to updates, I know, and I plan to work on that. I think it's my biggest flaw as a writer....... You guys have been giving some great feedback, and I really appreciate that. I honestly am going to try to get the chapters up much sooner, even though there are only a couple left. Possibly 3 chapters are left of this fic......I think I'll only do two more though. It all depends on exactly how I plan it out and how it turns out honestly. Thank you guys so much everything anyway. I hate waiting on updates too-I feel your impatience. I've gotten 32 reviews as of now! Wow! **This chapter goes out to to Ryn729 for being the 25th reviewer, but since a chapter was already dedicated to her, I'm going to dedicate it to Dani and Sunny-Dip for being the 24th and 26th reviewers!**

**Chapter****3: An Ambush and a Brawl**

"How could you do this? HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO US? ALL THIS TIME, I THOUGHT WE WERE YOUR FRIENDS! YOU JERK!" Naruto's fist flew towards Sasuke's face, only to hit air as the Uchiha darted towards his feet, causing him to crash to the ground.

"I won't let you stop me from leaving. I'll never get strong enough in that pathetic excuse for a village." Sasuke responded, emotionless. "I would have never even acchieved this much power if it weren't for the help of Orochimaru!"

"What do you mean? What's the use of power if you don't even earn it yourself? I would rather be weak and work for my strength than be strong and have it handed to me! And I'm taking you back to the damn village!" Naruto commanded, jumping back onto his feet.

"There's no way you'll be able to take me back. You're too weak to control me." A touch of anger flared in Sasuke's eyes, his lust for power burning through them and straight into Naruto's soul. Both quickly and suddenly, he tackled Naruto onto the ground and flew up a nearby tree.

"You won't get away from me, Sasuke!" the blond haired ninja promised.

Naruto leaped into the tree Sasuke was standing in. As soon as he did, a fire bomb exploded, sending him flying toward the ground, stirring the dirt into a sandy fog. Sasuke leaped out of the air bellowing.

"DEMON WIND SHURIKEN! WINDMILL OF SHADOWS!"

The lethal weapon struck Naruto, right on target. "Aagggghhhh..." Blood oozed down his back, and he remained on the ground, defeated.......

Until he disappeared in a puff of smoke. Sasuke felt himself being grabbed from behind, but the hold was too strong, as Naruto had the advantage of surprise on his side. His shadow clone had served it's purpose.

"Come......back........with me...." Naruto growled.

"No." Sasuke denied him as simply as possible.

"AAARRRHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!" Kyuubi's chakra built up inside Naruto, along with his rage. The red chakra became visible outside of his body. He released his hold on Sasuke, sending powerful blows with his fists towards his former comrade. Although powerful, they were too slow, and Sasukeblocked then all with his hands. "You will come back to the village with me!"

_Pft......this form of his is so powerful......_Sasuke admitted to himself. He had seen Naruto's demon form once in a fight when Orochimaru attacked the Hidden Leaf Village, but feeling the heat of the battle himself was more tedious than he ever imagined. Even so he was still confident. _Then I'll just have to bring out some more of my own power....._

His newly obtained power, the second form of the curse mark, set to work. Markings that disturbingly resembled black flames began to appear along his arms and legs, and were soon spreading to the rest of his body.

_What? His curse mark? Ergh......._Naruto recognized Sasuke'sother form as well. However, he had no fear, only annoyance. He wanted this battle to be over with as soon as possible, but it didn't look like it was going to work that way......

Sasukebegan charging at him, both his legs and arms flying towards Naruto's body. Taken off guard, Naruto dodged them as best as he could, but one blow struck him in his gut, and he went flying into a tree. Becoming more angry and frustrated by the second, Naruto felt Kyuubi's power continuing to build inside of him. The red chakra erupted, forming the ears and single tail of a fox around the boy's body.

_What?_Sasuke thought in shock, for he had never seen Kyuubi's power at this intensity.

"You know..........you're special, Naruto." Sasuke commented darkly. "But I am too!" His eyes flashed and his curse mark began to spread even more. Pretty soon, his skin was entirely covered, causing it to turn a rather tan color, almost a dark sort of gray. His hair grew much longer-about as long as Jiriya's-and it too, turned a different shade of dark gray. Along the ridge of his nose emerged a black four-pointed star, or rather, diamond, and sickly wings erupted from his back. As he opened his eyes, Naruto noticed, to his alarm, that around Sasuke's red sharigan, the whites of his eyes were indeed black.

_What is this? _Naruto thought in alarm. _Sasuke....he looks so freaky! What kind of freaky form is this?_

"I WILL ABOLISH YOU! NO ONE WILL GET IN THE WAY OF MY AVENGENCE!" Sasuke bellowed, showing much more emotion that he usually did. He darted towards Naruto, shouting.

"CHIDORI!" The power sparks of blue lightning began building up in his right hand.

Coming back to his senses, Naruto flew into action.

"RASENGAN!" he cried, the ball of power emiting from his hand as well.

Naruto charged towards Sasuke, both of their attacks ricocheting off each other, causing a huge and colorful explosion of power, and sending them both flying in opposite directions.

As he hit the ground, realization also came over Naruto. _Sakura!!_How could he have forgotten? Why was he fighting Sasuke when his pink-haired teammate was on her way to Orochimaru's hideout in a coffin? _Retrieving Sasuke may be the goal of this mission, but the safety of my teammates is also important. After all I'm not even sure if Lee, Shikamaru, Choiji, and any of the others are safe....I won't let harm come to Sakura too! Sasuke can wait!_

"I don't have time for this!" Naruto announced. "All of us have risked our lives trying to help you, but if this is how you repay us, then why should we? When I said I'd get you back to the village, I meant it, and I never go back on my word. But Sakura is in danger, and if it wasn't for you running off like this, she would be at home, safe and sound. Not to mention that Kiba, Shikamaru, Shino, Choiji, and Lee are all fighting for their lives against the ninja that you teamed up with just to save your sorry butt. I want to help you, but I'm not letting Orochimaru hurt Sakura! I'm going after her, and I'll find you later!"

_Eh? Orochimaru......harming Sakura? How could he? Isn't Sakura--_Sasuke realized that Sakura must've left the village to help the others find him. He had expected for Naruto and possibly a few others to pursue him, but he knew that they would be able to take care of themselves. Sasuke thought that Naruto would make Sakura stay in the village.........._This isn't about anything but me gaining power......This is what it takes........for me to defeat Itachi..........The others shouldn't get involved.....Sakura shouldn't get involved......_Even though Sakura had proved herself to be quite strong, Sasuke saw her as a fragile girl....In his opinion, there was no way she could survive a fight with any high level ninja on her own. He would never admit to himself how protective he was of the girl......

Naruto turned his back to Sasuke, about to break into a run towards the direction he saw Kabuto carrying the coffin, which of course, contained Sakura. Kyuubi's chakra contained itself once again, and Naruto's eyes had returned to their normal shade of blue.

"Wait, Naruto....." Sasukesaid slowly. "I didn't want her involved.......It's my fault she's in danger, and I need to make sure that she gets out of it. Don't think that I'm going back to the village with you, but I won't let Sakura die because of my decision." He stood up, his body returning to normal as well.

_Eh....Sakura's most important right now. I can worry about dragging his ass back home later..._Naruto decided. "All right then, well, we'd better hurry! We've been fighting all this time......Sakura's probably all ready at the hideout by now. They might not know that she's there yet, but......"

"What do you mean?" Sasuke asked as they sprinted through the trees. "How could they not be aware of her presence?"

"Well, you see-" Naruto went on to explain how Sakura got into that coffin and Kabuto was now carrying it to Orochimaru's hideout, still unaware that she was in it.........hopefully.

_Why? _The question burned into Sasuke. _What good did she think that would do?_

________________________________________________________________________________

_Sakura's POV_

_Thud_. Kabuto plopped the coffin onto a hard floor, making a sharp pain shoot up Sakura's back as it slammed against the inside of the coffin. She was very stiff from being cramped in such a small face for what she guessed was about two hours.

"Hm? That's odd........I would've thought that the seal of the coffin would have released Uchiha by now.....The transformations weren't expected to take this long..........I suppose his body could be simply having a hard time adjusting, causing the process to take longer....." Kabuto pondered aloud to himself. "I guess I should fetch Lord Orochimaru. He's probably very cranky by now................." He swallowed.

Once his footsteps faded into the distance, (she heard them patter off somewhere left of where she was standing) Sakura began to plan her next move. _What should I do now?_Well, she _kind of _began to plan her next move. Since her decision to step into the coffin was made both rashly and suddenly, she never really figured out what she was going to do once she arrived at Orochimaru'shideout. While she was being carried, she debated strongly with herself on whether to get out of the coffin if left alone, or simply stay in it and hope that the two taunting ninja wouldn't open it until the seal released itself, which, of course, wouldn't happen as it all ready did so when Sasuke got out. But Orochimaru and Kabuto didn't know that......

Even still, if she stayed in the coffin, there was a chance that the two would open it eventually. Sakura had to face it:she couldn't take those two on her own. Even the fourth Hokage died at Orochimaru's hands.....She probably wouldn't be left alone again. This was her only chance. She had to decide _now._

Sakura opened the lid of the coffin and stepped out.

She found herself in dark hall with candles spread out every few feet, casting only a dim light. The hall branched off into every direction, with many different twists and turns. The walls were made of dirt; it appeared as if the hideout was underground.

_At least if I die here, I'll already be buried..._Sakura shuddered at the thought. She walked swiftly down the hall, randomly taking a turn at the second passageway on the right. She hoped it would lead to an exit.

_Sasuke's probably all ready far away by now......Once they return to the coffin, they'll think that it just opened. They'll search this whole place first, and by the time they actually start looking for him outside, he'll have time to be halfway across this land! I've done all I can do to stall for him. Now I just need to escape myself._

Despite the creeps that this place gave her, Sakurawas extremely pleased with herself for taking matters into her own hands. She didn't stand aside a let some one else take care of things, _she _helped Sasuke get away, not the other way around. A faint smile became etched onto her face.

After a few terrifying seconds of walking through the passageway, Sakurabegan to realize that there wasn't an exit nearby, or at least, if there was, it would be next to impossible for her to find it. She knew how to get back to where the coffin was, but with as many hallways as there were, she also knew that if she ventured much further, she wouldn't be able to get back to it, being more lost than ever.

_I have to find a way out. There's no turning back now, and it has to be around here somewhere! I just hope that those creeps aren't too close......_(meaning Kabuto and Orochimaru)

In the distance, she heard a loud yell of rage. _They must've returned to the coffin, finding it empty! Their search for Sasuke, or rather, me, begins now! _Sakura realized in alarm. She had hoped that she would have a bit more time than this, but her fear made her work faster. She sprinted down the south hall, turning left at the corner.

To her relief, a very faint light emitted from the first door to the north. The exit! Sakuraran towards it, but the floor gave out underneath her just as she stood in front of it.

"Damn!" Feeling both stupid and careless, she realized that she had run straight into a trap door. _In this place, what goes in, doesn't come back out......_Why didn't she just pay more attention?

She landed with a thud onto a hard and wet floor. It was very cold in the room, as if she were trapped in a humongous basement in the middle of winter. It was even darker than it was in the halls; Sakura had to strain to see her surroundings.

She barely payed any attention at all to the walls, floor, or room itself, because to her horror, bones littered the floor, covering it completely in places. Human bones. Skeletons were everywhere.

Feeling a strong sense of death, Sakura forced herself to look up and away from the remains of others who had obviously died here. She wouldn't end up like them. She would escape. The managed to maneuver over the skeletons and the the East wall. Surely there was some way out of here..........

Becoming alert once again, Sakura heard Kabuto's voice. "My Lord, the trapdoor! He must've fell inside!"

Another voice spat. "Well, then retrieve him!"

Feet hit the floor fairly hard. Kabuto'seyes met with the green emeralds of the Konoha ninja. "Well, what do we have here? Wonder too far from home?" The pupils of his eyes flashed evilly.

________________________________________________________________________________

"Naruto! This is it," Sasukecalled out to his partner, who was continuing to sprint over a seal in the ground that his teammate recognized. After forming strange seals with his hands, Sasukeslammed his right palm onto the seal, causing it to glow and expand. The ground shifted, revealing a small passageway the size of a fox-hole. He lowered himself into the ground with Naruto right behind him.

There was no way to tell where Sakura could possibly be at down there, but they were going to find her, whatever it took.

Sasuke landed lightly on his feet on the concrete floor of the hideout. Naruto landed less gracefully, crashing to the floor. He stood back up, rubbing the back of this leg.

"Do you want to get us killed?" Sasuke hissed at him.

" I'm sorry. I forgot that _I _was the one that _was the cause of all of this_."

Sasuke's face lost a little bit of color, and he remained quiet for a few moments. He stepped forward silently. After walking just a few feet, he noticed a rather large pit in the ground.

"Eh? Naruto, look."

"Do you think she might've---" Naruto got down on his knees and stuck his head into the pit. "Damn! It's too dark in there! I can't see anything! Sakura! Are you down there? SAKURA!"

There wasn't an answer.

Naruto started to leap into the pit, taking action, but Sasuke quickly grabbed his shoulder, holding him back. "What good would it do if we got trapped down there as well? She didn't respond....maybe Sakura isn't trapped down there anyway. We need to search elsewhere first, and if something leads us to think that she is in fact trapped in that pit, _then_ we'll go in as well."

"Grr..."Naruto was anxious to find his comrade. " I guess you're right, but I don't want for some creep to be beating the crap out of her down there! We'd better search quick!"

_I want for her to be safe too, Naruto. Don't think I'm just going to poke around while Sakura's in danger..._

"_I_ won't be slowing _you_down." He replied hotly, jumping over the pit with a thud and turning left down the first passage that he came too. Naruto walked swiftly behind him, making just a little noise.

After about seven minutes of walking, Sasuke abruptly stopped at a wooden door with rusty hinges. Narutobegan to open his mouth, but the Uchiha pressed a finger to his lips.

"Where is that boy?" Sasuke and Naruto both froze as they recognized the accursed voice that spoke the words.

"I don't know!" Sakura's voice shot back.

"YOU SAID THAT YOU HELPED HIM ESCAPE! WHERE IS UCHIHA?!"

"I don't know! I didn't see him! I just knew that Kabuto would search for him when he realized the coffin was empty! I wanted for Sasuke to get away, so I got in! I never saw Sasuke get out!"

"YOU FOOL!"

They heard Sakura scream. The next moment, the door was flung open by Sasuke Uchiha.

Panicked eyes that belonged to Sakura flew towards him,as well the power-hungry ones of Orochimaru. Kabuto was unreadable.

"Well, what do we have here?" Orochimaru chuckled darkly.

________________________________________________________________________________

Well, it looks like you got your wish, Mr. Nobody! I was planning on both Naruto and Sasuke to go and get Sakura together from the start, so I'm glad you felt that that was a good way for things to go as well.

I'm still taking all of your ideas into consideration as I write the remainder of this fic, and all of your suggestions, thoughts, and reviews are greatly appreciated. As I am anxious to complete this fic, since there will only be another chapter or two, the next update will actually be in a monthor so, if not sooner. Maybe even in the next week! Once again, I thank everyone for being so patient with me, as this is my first update in nearly a year......My apologies! I just didn't have so much motive to write because I was frustrated that there's still no sign of Naruto Shippuden coming on TV any time soon, the filler episodes really sucked, and I just didn't feel like watching sub.......I really should start reading the manga, but there aren't any bookstores in my town since it's so small. I wish I lived in the city......

**The next chapter dedication goes to the 40th reviewer! **(hehe! Review or Neji will start rambling about destiny.......**AGAIN!**and you will die of boredom......unless you commit suicide first. I would!) I love poking fun at Neji........

Your wacky, otaku fanfiction writer,

-Ninja Fox of the Fire(who is promising to start doing better on her updates....I really need to!)


	5. Chapter 4: A Snake's Recoil

**Shadows on the Cherry Blossom**

Summary: When Sasuke defeats Naruto and Sakura again, still refusing to come home, Kyuubi sends Sakura back in time to go on the Sasuke Retrieval mission. He thinks that if she will, just maybe she can help them bring him home....and back to his original self. (SasuSaku)

Disclaimer: Ninja Fox of the Fire's quest to own Naruto: **Epic failure.**

Authoress's Message: All right! It looks like I'm getting this chapter up as scheduled, for a change! (Just a little under a month's time....) I got to pat myself on the back.....Enough, enough of all of that.......Moving on, I didn't get a 40th reviewer as I hoped to get for the dedication. But, that's all right because the last chapter hasn't been up for too terribly long, and I have gotten 37 reviews, which is close. Even, so what do about the dedication, you ask? Well, as promised, **this chapter is dedicated to Destinys Blue Night** since she has reviewed for all of my chapters, and of course, it has to go to someone! Thanks to everyone once again for your support. I hope you enjoy the 4 chapter of _Shadows on the Cherry Blossom_.

**Chapter 4: A Snake's Recoil**

"My new servant has arrived at last! Welcome, welcome! You would like little Miss Pink back, wouldn't you?" Orochimaru laughed sadistically. "Well, come and get her!"

Blinded by rage, Sasuke rashly charged towards Orochimaru, pinning him to the greasy wall of the chamber. But the Sanin only laughed once again, hissing like a snake. He slithered along the wall, easily breaking free of Sasuke's grasp. Sakura was bleeding and she crumpled to the floor, in a great deal of pain. There was no telling what that monster had done to her.

_And it's all my fault......._Sasuke once again realized that the blame was his.

"You won't escape me.......Not now, my vessel!" he eyed Sasuke, hungrily. "In only just a year or so, you will submit your body, and I will take possession of it! You will _become_me!" Orochimaru confirmed to Sasuke for the second time.

_I've wandered into this snake hole..........and I might not be getting back out. But Sakura has to escape, somehow! Maybe Naruto could help her.......But how can they get away without being seen? Orochimaru will only snatch Naruto up as well..........We have to plan something out....There's got to be a way......_

Sakura moaned. _He can't do that to Sasuke! He can't truly want this..........Why did he ever come to that snake to begin with? _She bit down on Orochimaru's ankle, hard. Being ignored while laying on the ground has it's advantages.....

"AAAH! WHY YOU LITTLE BRAT!" Orochimaru released his grip on Sasuke and dove for Sakura. She rolled to the side, but her injuries slowed her down. Sasuke sprung into action, jumping on the man's back and fastening his hands around his throat.

Orochimaru cursed, prying Sasuke'shands from his neck, and knocking him off of his back and onto the cold stone floor. Amist the ruckus, Kabuto, who had been merely been standing around, as if in a movie theater, stepped forward to stand by his Lord.

"There is no point in fighting. You should know better than to think that the girl or yourself for that matter can ever hope to escape myself and Lord Orochimaru," Kabuto stated indifferently to Sasuke.

Naruto, who was still just outside the door, had had enough of standing around and spectating. Although he knew it would be wise to remain hidden, there was only so much of the elder ninjas' smart-mouthing that he could take. His fuse had run out. He charged into the room to stand in front of Sakura.

Sasuke picked himself back up off of his feet and sneered. " I'm not a fool. I won't go anywhere, if you just let those two go unharmed." If he could get Sakura out by negotiating, why not spare Naruto too? Sasuke did care about his blonde haired comrade, as much as he denied it. Revenge was all he had to live for after all; what was the use of him even escaping? He certainly wasn't going back to the Leaf Village.

_Like I could ever gain enough power to defeat Itachi in Konoha.....You've got to learn cruel and forbidden skills to defeat one that possesses them....._

"No, Sasuke...." Sakura started to argue, but was cut off by the cold look that he gave her.

_I can't leave her hanging onto me.....She has to live- she has to get away from here........._

"Those two pathetic genin?" Orochimarulet out a short bark of laughter. "Fine, Kabuto, don't try to stop them....Scram, you dogs! As long as you stay, my future vessel. I will feel so rejuvenated in such a young and powerful body...."

"But, Sasuke!" Naruto definitely wasn't the type to leave someone behind, especially the boy who he looked up to as a brother.

"Go! Just leave! It's just like I told you-I'm not going back to Konoha! This is the path I choose! I just wanted to get Sakura out of here! Now LEAVE! YOU TWO DON'T MEAN ANYTHING TO ME!!"

Sakura stood shakily to her feet. "Sasuke, I won't leave you........" But Narutopicked her up, and carried her out of the chamber with pain reflected in his eyes.

"It's no use. He told me that he wasn't going to come back. I'm getting you out of here, Sakura, and then I'm coming back into this hellhole to kick his ass all the way back to Konoha!"

Orochimaru slammed the chamber door shut, and Sasuke heard a lock click. The snake's teeth glimmered in the dim light as a psychotic grin spread across his face. Kabuto's eyes held a knowing gleam. "The trap has been set, my Lord."

Sasuke let out a grunt. "What? Bu--You can't honestly think that we'd let those two out of this chamber free to do whatever they want." He went into a laughing fit once again. "Even if they didn't try to pull another ambush on us, they'd just go tattling on us to their little Hokage! It's not like we'll be here much longer anyway. Oh no, we've got plenty of other places to hide in!"

"And the blonde ninja's Kyuubi would be much more useful under our hands........" Kabuto added, his lust for power made even more obvious, if possible.

"You bastards..........." Sasuke growled through clenched teeth. His hands were clenched into tight fists, and he stood with his back erect.

"Now, now, is that any way to talk to your master?" Orochimaru taunted. "Bad doggies get punished....."

And with that, he hit Sasuke hard in the back with an iron bar, and the boy went out cold. "No, I won't let you go chasing after your friends............."

________________________________________________________________________________

Who, speaking of which, were scrambling down the corridors, in a confused panic. They were a bit disoriented, and were unsure of where to turn.

"We have to go back...........What about Sasuke?" Sakura continued to argue.

"I........I just don't know, Sakura! Do you think that I wanted to leave him? But if we get trapped down here too, what good will it do? I don't know how we can get him out of here without being seen! Those psychos are just as like to recapture us as they are to do something even worse! I don't even know if I can find this place again though, or if Sasuke will still be here if I do.........I guess he'd be happy then......You heard him, he doesn't want us to come back! He doesn't ever want to see us again!"

Sakura froze, her hands balled into loose fists. She looked down as she spoke. "I don't believe him."

"What? What do you mean?"

She looked up into Naruto's eyes, and increased the volume of her voice. "He doesn't want to live like this. He might have though that t this what the life he wanted when he left the village, but it isn't what he wants now. I can just tell! He sacrificed himself so that we could escape! He only told us those things to break our ties!" In a lower voice, she added, "It's just like how he left me on that bench.........He knocked me out so I couldn't follow him-so that I wouldn't want to. But I did anyway. Sasuke could never say or do anything to make me give up on him!"

Realization kicked into Naruto. _Just like when he fought me.........and told me I meant nothing to him..._

Narutobegan, "He tries to break ties withpeople"-"so that he can do what he pleases without having someone to stop him." Sakurafinished. "That's all it takes to hold him back. Deep down, he wants to be with us. And that's why he always does things like this on the spur of the moment. So that he can force himself into situations to make himself stronger, without being able to turn back."

"Or without having some one hold him back......." Naruto concluded.

"That's why I won't leave him. I won't let Sasuke sacrifice himself for me again. I won't let him be held as a prisoner here on account of me. I won't let him go without saying goodbye-without telling him everything that I've ever wanted for him to know."

Narutonodded. "Then we'll just have to scrape up some kind of plan........." He let out a long sigh, massaging the back of his neck. "I just don't have any idea with where to begin. These aren't exactly other geninthat we're dealing with.........."

As if on cue, the floor they were standing on rose rapidly, like an elevator...........that moved about twenty times faster than normal.

Sakura and Naruto gripped each other tightly in their panic, hanging on for dear life. The floor abruptly stopped moving, but the two found themselves closed between four walls. They released their hold on each other.

"DAMMIT!" Naruto yelled in frustration, pawing the walls, floor, and even the ceiling for some sort of exit. None were apparent.

Sakura was searching as well, but it was no use..........They were trapped.

_Unless........_Naruto built up a ball of blue chakra in his right hand. "RASENGAN!" he cried, slamming the attack against one of the walls. Usually his attack would penetrate through the wall entirely, but only a small dent was made in the wall of the chamber. The walls were built to take damage-it would probably take many more to break out of the cell. Of course, very powerful attacks like his rasengan might be able to do the job. But would he have the chakra for so many? How think _was _his wall anyway?

"RASENGAN! RASENGAN!" Naruto pounded attack after attack into the same section of the wall. Sakura sat watching, curled up in the floor to protect herself from flying pieces of cement that flew as a result of his attacks. The wall was depleting, but so was the blonde-haired ninja's chakra. He attempted to build another ball of chakra up in his hands, but only morsels formed together. "Dammit....." he grumbled, beginning to claw at the wall in vain, gaining nothing but bleeding hands.

Sakura picked herself up off of the floor. "Naruto, maybe we--"

But the boy could not hear her, for, deep inside of him, Kyuubi was calling.

________________________________________________________________________________

Inside of his own body once again, Naruto found himself back in front of Kyuubi's familiar cage. There was a haze over everything, as if he was in a dream.

The demon growled from behind its bars. "So, it appears that you are unable to cope without my aid once again."

Naruto's eyes widened. "A-again? I haven't asked for your help in such a long time! Sasuke's life is in danger-I don't have time to be taunted by you!"

Kyuubi continued without missing a beat. "But I have aided you greatly over the past week. You simply can't remember. I _will _grant you some of my chakra, Naruto. You still have enough time. Even still, since you must call me to aid you, I have a desire to once again make you aware of your mission."

"I am aware of my mission! My mission is to retrieve Sasuke and bring him back to village! But Sasuke asked me to save Sakura! I was going to leave him for the time being, but we're going back for him! It's just that we're trapped, and I've ran out of chakra, and"--"Enough. I understand what is going on. It is you who has a bit of an unclear picture."

Naruto fought back the desire to argue, but he pursed his lips and remained silent.

"Only a week ago, you and Sakurawere both sixteen. Or rather, you were three years into future. This very time that you are standing in is the one that determines Sasuke's fate-whether or not that he will return to Konoha or turn to your worst enemies is in your hands. Once you let him slip between your fingers, and there was no making him turn back. Sakura and yourself tracked him for three years, only to be defeated again and again. He was simply cold and unnegotiatable."

Naruto held a very serious look on his face. As crazy as it sounded, he could very well end up making some of the same mistakes again...........And then Sasuke would be lost forever. "But he will listen to us now?"

"He will listen to Sakura. But you must protect her from harm for that to be possible. She is strong, but I don't believe that it is necessary for me to point out the dangers lurking behind these walls."

Naruto nodded solemnly.

"I wanted to inform you once again-I have sent you two back in time to carry out this mission. Do not fail me. Your chakra has been restored. Now, GO!" Kyuubiended with a booming growl.

_______________________________________________________________________________

The haze was lifted from his eyes, and Narutofound himself back inside those four accursed, stone walls.

_Why should Kyuubi care about Sasuke?_

But the question simply didn't matter at this point.

"N-Naruto? Are you all right?" Concern was heavy in Sakura's voice and eyes.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just listen! I met with Kyuubi again. We don't remember it, but only a week ago, we were sixteen! Kyuubi sent us three years into the past because we let Sasuke slip through our fingers before, and he wants for us to save him this time around. We won't fail him again, I promise!" All of the words came pouring out in his mixed feelings of impatience and anxiety. "But it's really up to you Sakura! You are the one who can change his path! You're the only one who can break through to him!"

The pink haired girl's eyes flashed with determination. _I won't fail him again..._

"Ok, Naruto. I _will _convince Sasuke to come back to Konoha. _I _promise _you_."

He gave her a quick grin, turning to face the crumbling wall. Kyuubi's chakra caused a reddish-orange glow to omit from his body, and chakra of the same color built up into a ball in his palm. "RASENGAN!" And with the demon's help, the attack unleashed ten times its normal power, causing the entire wall to collapse to the floor.

For a moment, Sakura was awed, but she quickly jumped back into action, tailing Naruto as the two dodged bricks and other dubree that littered the floor. Once again, they sprinted down the corridors, finding their way back to the room where Sasuke was imprisoned out of pure desire to save him from his own damned fate.

The stood outside of the closed doorway, the anxiety completely taking over.

"What should we do now?" Naruto whispered as softly as he could possibly manage.

She replied with confidence. "We simply break in. We'll make it through for Sasuke."

Their decision may have been foolish, but they were brave, never the less.

________________________________________________________________________________

_Sakura.......?_Sasuke had regained consciousness, but he had yet to open his eyes.

Onyx black eyes were revealed, and the fantasy was shattered. Reality was clear-he was damned to carry out Orochimaru's bidding until the day that he died at the monster's hands. And it was all for nothing.

Because Sakurawas still trapped underground, doomed to die a painful death.

All because of him.

Orochimaru and Kabuto were facing the other side of the chamber, hissing and whispering amongst themselves in hushed tones. It was vile-sickening-wretched---any words of pure torture would cover how Sasuke felt listening to them; feeling their presence; knowing that Sakurawould die; knowing that the blame was his; knowing that they would both die this way........

Never to see the light again.

It was a small sound. _Imaginary? A hallucination, maybe? _Sasuke didn't know what to think. He thought that he was going crazy in his loss of hope. Maybe once a person lost all hope in anything and everything, their minds placed false hope inside themselves to numb the pain......But false hope was worse than no hope at all. This was worse than hell.........it was.....

It wasn't fake--it was her.

Sakura.

She had broken down the door, with Naruto standing right behind her.

She had escaped. Sasuke gazed upon her face. The very face that he would have killed to see again. It was before him.

Reality stabbed him again, as Orochimaru and Kabuto stood, charging her way, screaming, and beginning to launch into attack.

All of the haze lifted from Sasuke's brain, and he jumped to his feet. He flung himself in front of Sakura, but Orochimaru still stabbed him in the gut, flinging him to the ground, his blood spewing across the room. Orochimaru lunged at her again.

Sasuke screamed louder than he ever had in his entire life. It was pained and terrified, but more than anything, it was infuriated.

But then, in a red flash of light, a gigantic fox charged at the two snakes known as Orochimaru and Kabuto, and they fell dead on the chamber floor.

As quickly as it had appeared, the fox returned back to Naruto's body, which lay unconscious upon being temporarily separated from the demon. He quickly recovered however, and opened his eyes.

Sakura remained where she was standing, with wide eyes. Sasuke was still sprawling on the floor, continuing to bleed, but his wounds weren't deep enough to be fatal.

It was then that it finally sunk in.

Orochimaru and Kabuto had really died at their hands. (A/N: Well, actually at Kyuubi's hands, but....we'll give them credit)

They all remained speechless. There were no words to describe how they felt upon the death of the two ninja. There, of course, was the slight twinge of guilt that they always felt upon taking another's life, but a very great joy as well; terrible, but joyful. A great sense of relief was inevitable.

Sakura walked across the what was left of the chamber to kneel beside Sasuke. "Do you think that you can handle the trip home?" she asked softly, pulling some bandages out of her weapon bag.

He nodded, starting to stand. _I'm going home. I-this.........this isn't the kind of life I want......Being someone else's slave...........just for power....-it isn't worth it. _

"Wait, let me patch you up first....."Sakura ordered, wrapping the bandages around his upper waist and securing them tightly. "We'll get you to a hospital as soon as we get back to Konoha. Naruto and I need to get ourselves checked out as well."

Sasuke began to speak. "Sakura......."-"Sh. You don't have to say anything, Sasuke. It's ok. We're going home now."

He closed his eyes for what seemed like a very long time to him. When he opened them again, she was still there, waiting. "Ok."

Sasukestood, with sharp pains shooting down his stomach, but they eased off as he began to walk more. Sakura stood closely to him, just in case he needed some extra support on the walk home. Naruto remained very quiet for a time, as he wasn't exactly sure of what he should say. He was very pleased that he was able to save his comrade this time, but there was so much more to it than that.....

But, above all, they were all heading home as a team once again.

Naruto knew that he should be rejoicing a bit more on the inside, but as he was in that chamber, staring down at Orochimaru and Kabuto's bodies, a rather disturbing thought passed through his mind. It was ominous-like a warning. He knew that he didn't think it.........Maybe it was Kyuubi's doing?

Yes, Naruto was very thrilled to have Sasuke back as a ninja of Konoha, but he couldn't get the disturbing thought out of his mind. It echoed over and over.

_The problem with snakes is that you have to kill them twice, because they always recoil and strike again._

Orochimaru was dead, wasn't he?

________________________________________________________________________________

Authoress's note: Oooh.......I think this has been my favorite chapter to write so far! It was very easy too, because it all just kinda rolled off my fingers as I typed it. I'm really getting into this fic, and I made the month cut like I promised!(by a day! lol! Much better than waiting a whole year to update though-am I right or am I right?)

Well, obviously, this fic isn't over yet. I'm looking to make one more chapter, but I'm probably going to call it an epilogue in the chapter title. It's going to be absolutely packed with stuff though-probably the longest chapter of all! I'm really going to try and make a good one, so I hope that it pleases you guys. Who knows? Maybe it'll be more like 2 or 3 more chapters.......I'm not sure-I'll just have to see how things go as I'm typing them up. It all kind of depends on which direction I feel that the story is leaning towards.

Anyway, reviews are still my inspiration to write, and I'm not making in promises on when the next chapter will be up, so all I can say is, if you want to the next update to be up sooner rather than later, give me a review, please. (and no, I'm not saying that if you don't review, I won't update, but reviews do give me more of an incentitive to write.) Anyway, **the next chapter will be dedicated to the 45th reviewer**, so I'll need at least 8 reviews to get 45 total for now. I didn't get 40 as I hoped that I would for last chapter, but I really did appreciate the reviews that I did get. I did have a lot of people add this fic to their favorites and alerts as well, which is also kind of flattering. It makes me feel good anyway. But please review. :)

Thanks for reading, hoped you liked this chapter, and I appreciate any reviews recieved! Ja ne!

-Ninja Fox of the Fire


	6. Chapter 5: Snake Reincarnate

Shadows on the Cherry Blossom

Summary: When Sasuke defeats Naruto and Sakura again, still refusing to come home, Kyuubi sends Sakura back in time to go on the Sasuke Retrieval mission. He thinks that if she will, just maybe she can help them bring him home...and back to his original self. (SasuSaku)

Disclaimer: I refuse to get a sex change, alter the pigment of my skin and hair, and take all sorts of testosterone hormones, so therefore I will never be anything like Kishimoto, which would include owning Naruto.

Authoress's message: Well, it's been nearly 10 months since my last update. I sincerely apologize! Please forgive me, as I've had a lot to deal with in the real world, including being hospitalized. And high school can be time-consuming. But have, no fear, summer is here, and with it, several back to back updates of this fic! I plan to update every one to two weeks until I finally complete it this summer! I have decided to do at least one more chapter and then the epilogue. There could very well be two chapters and then the epilogue. My faithful readers, shall we? Enjoy the 5th chapter of _Shadows on the Cherry Blossom. _I hope it was worth the wait! Oh, and **this chapter is dedicated to heart in a circle for being the 45****th**** reviewer!** Thanks for all the reviews, alerts, favorites, and all that jazz, everyone! ^_^

**Chapter 5: Snake Reincarnate**

Team Kakashi climbed their way out of Orochimaru's hell-hole. It was a bit of a struggle, as they all had minor injuries. However, the reunion of the trio was well worth the pain. Yet, there wasn't much conversation or rejoicing going on. Sasuke and Sakura were both lost in thought, pondering over many different struggles that were still ahead. After all, how could he give up his revenge? His brother killed his entire clan, and was crazy enough to spare him just so he could suffer through that terrible loss when he was only seven years old? And Sakura had to figure out a way to make Sasuke want to stick around. She had to prove to him that he could get strong enough in the Leaf Village. _Just look at Jiriya and all the Hokage…_she mentally pleaded. Of course, it was pretty clear that he wouldn't run off to someone like Orochimaru again. But still, she feared that he might set off somewhere else and leave her again. He was so restless over Itachi and gaining power after all.

However, Naruto was definitely the most restless. He suddenly stopped in his tracks, violently gripping his head in his hands. _The problem with snakes is that you have to kill them twice, because they always recoil and strike again. The problem with snakes is that you have to kill them twice, because they always recoil and strike again. _

"Naruto, are you all right?" Sakura and Sasuke had slowed to a halt too.

"Oh, uh, yeah, yeah. I'm fine." He released his grip, and continued walking back towards the village. It was going to be a long trek, and how could he inform his teammates of the strange echoing in his mind when they already had so much to worry about? He was probably just imagining things anyway. It was nothing. Or so he told himself…

Hiking through the wilderness on the way home, Naruto thought again of the rest of the Retrieval Squad. Were Shikamaru, Kiba, Choji, and Neji all okay? It was his sincere hope that they all were.

"Sakura, how do you think the rest of the Retrieval Squad is doing?" he finally asked. "Do you remember where any of them were when we left? I mean, all of this forest looks the same, and I suppose they wouldn't stay in one spot forever, but still." He'd been keeping both eyes on the lookout for them.

"I'm sure they're fine." She tried to sound confident. "They're strong ninja after all." _But still, those men of Orochimaru's…I've never seen any power like that before. It almost made sense that Sasuke turned to him…._

Sasuke remained silent. _Those genin…they might all be dead. The people of the Leaf Village usually banish traitors. Why was I different? I knew these two would want to go after me, but I never thought the Hokage would actually let them…Much less send other ninja….._

Naruto had another thought. "Well the Hokage never would have sent us all out of this mission if she didn't think that—" The three ninja stopped abruptly and paused to listen. The ground was rumbling, and it began to shake. This wasn't your ordinary earthquake.

A sickly white hand erupted out of the ground and clutched Sasuke's ankle in a death grip. A faint, hideous voice broke through the cracks in the ground. "You belong to me, Uchiha."

"Uhn? What is this?" Sasuke was very confused and although he would never admit it, more scared than he had ever been in any battle.

_No…It can't be true…_Naruto realized it was. "Guys…Orochimaru is back. I-I think he has to be killed twice to die…"

"What? How could this be? What is he? He-he can't be human?" Sakura spoke in disbelief.

"I don't know what this creep is, but either way…HE'S HISTORY!" Naruto dove for the ground, kicking at the hand. Sasuke's ankle caught some of the heat too, but as the fists and feet pounded, the hand quickly unfurled and he stepped aside. Suddenly, the hand retreated back into the ground.

The three genin looked around for a sign of it, all alert and ready. The ground began to rumble and shake, with fissures already forming.

"Get into the trees!" Sasuke called out, beginning to move towards the nearest one in the forest. Sakura and Naruto were right on his heels. The squad was soon piled into the branches, looking down at the nightmare below. More and more fissures were forming. Pretty soon, the cracks would join together and form a huge, gaping hole.

With a final eruption, a body burst through the ground, sending chucks of dirt and rock flying everywhere. It flew away from the ground that was collapsing below it and landed a few feet away from the danger. Its head was still hanging down with its black, oily hair covering its eyes. However, its silhouette was all too familiar. Before it looked up with piercing, bloodthirsty eyes, Squad 7 already knew that Orochimaru was in their presence once again. There was no escaping. He already had his eyes set on the squad, all too aware of their presence.

"That's perfect because someone needs to finish this bastard once and for all!" Naruto muttered to his teammates, letting his confidence shine through his fear of this freak of nature's unknown powers. They both gave silent nods of agreement.

"Let's surround him." Sakura decided. "Sasuke, you take his left side. Naruto, you take his right side. I'll get the center." (Authoress's note: No pun intended! Yet I just point out my own grammar choices that sound wrong…Oh well! Ha-ha. It wasn't intentional!)

Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto dove into their positions, boxing in their enemy. Orochimaru let out a hideous laugh, sending his impossibly long, snake-like tongue towards Naruto. Naruto dodged it by jumping, but it just kept extending. He dodged it just to have it chase him further! Instead of trying to play a game of tag with the tongue being "it," Naruto stopped moving and allowed the tongue to bind him to a tree like a rope.

It was then that Sasuke had completely charged up his chakra to unleash his chidori power. He charged towards Orochimaru, planning to hit him in the back and strike his heart. While the fiend was distracted by the incoming lightning surge, Sakura ran towards Naruto and cut the tongue swiftly with her kunai.

Orochimaru screamed in pain as blood flew everywhere. However, he had very little time to focus on that discomfort, because just a few seconds later, Sasuke's chidori hit him, right on target. Orochimaru did a face plat into the dirt with a thud.

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura didn't ease up. "It's over just like that?" Sakura was puzzled.

"That was too easy to be a real victory," Sasuke decided.

"Unless his second from was much more weakened than the first…" Naruto pondered.

"It's not."

"It could be!"

"It's not."

"Who cares? Let's just get out of here already!" Naruto began to turn his back to the corpse, but it was already too late to scram.

The head began to rise once again. Sasuke's voice was steady and lifeless, as a father's is when explaining something to his child for the tenth time. "I know that his second form is not weaker and that he therefore was not dead because one's second form is always stronger. Just look at my curse mark's second from or Naruto's Kyuubi form."

"Nya? But it was such a struggle to kill him before, and you're telling us he's much stronger this time? There's no way we can possibly survive this one if he's that powerful!"

"We're going to have to try." Sasuke concluded, although he had to admit to himself that the chances they'd all make it home alive were slim. Not to mention that they were still worn down from their previous encounter with Orochimaru only about an hour or so before. There was no way out of fighting though. If they didn't fight, they'd die for sure.

Sasuke saw his own fears reflected in his teammates' eyes, regardless of the fact that they were all trying to hide it. It wasn't working for any of them. Sasuke's wheels were turning. _Unless…_

"I was wrong. _We_ don't have to try to do anything. However, _I _do."

Sakura stammered at his last comment "What? What are you talking about, Sasuke?"

Orochimaru was back up and ready for some demolishing. They could see his snake tongue rolling over his lips. "It's not over yet, Uchiha. Don't you want to come back home with me, little boy?" His voice was sickly sweet.

"Naruto, take Sakura and go back to Konoha. There's no point in all of us dying here."

"No. I've told you before; you're the closest thing I'll ever have to a brother. There's no way I'm leaving you here alone. Sakura, you should go back though. We don't want you to get hurt. Sasuke especially doesn't." Naruto still clearly remembered the way Sasuke became enraged and protective when Sakura was in danger back in Orochimaru's lair. He wasn't stupid-he could see in between the lines.

"But-"

"SAKURA, GO! WE DON'T NEED YOU HERE!" Sasuke screamed, hoping that the rare outburst of anger in his voice would scare her enough to make her listen to him.

It didn't. Not only because Sakura was standing her ground, but because the outbursts were becoming more frequent here lately. "No. We're a team. You two always stick together until the end. I'm not bailing. I'm part of this team too and you two matter to me just as much as I matter to you. If we go down, we're going down together."

They started to argue with her, but the two boys didn't have a chance to get the first word out, because Orochimaru was already beginning to climb up the tree they were in. "Come here, my little kitty kitties….Did the big mean doggies scare you up the tree?" And the shudder-worthy laugh of Orochimaru came once again.

Sasuke slid down the tree, landing his feet on Orochimaru's head. He quickly jumped off with his back facing open air to land directly below the demon before he had time to react. He shoved a kunai into his cloak, pinning him to the tree. Orochimaru quickly released it with a twist of his body and clutched Sasuke's neck in his rough, thin hands, gagging him. "It's an awful shame I'll have to kill you, Uchiha. Your body would be such an ideal vessel for me. I'd be so young, and rejuvenated. The powers of the sharingan alone hold enough temptation for me. No matter. Perhaps I can still salvage your body. I just wanted to let you grow stronger before I took you on as a vessel. I guess I'll manage. Ssssssorry." He slithered and laughed darkly.

Sasuke writhed in Orochimaru's grip. Some inhumanly power he possessed made it impossible to break free. His second from was definitely stronger. Not that his first wasn't strong enough…When they killed him the first time, his body was in a much weakened state.

"Cha!" Sakura was infuriated. She attacked Orochimaru relentlessly in her blind rage. _He was always going to kill him! The bastard! Not that I ever thought he was above such lowly manners. He tempts his pray, satisfies its fantasies for just a moment, and then devours it in its glory. He'll never tempt Sasuke again! He'll never use him as a vessel! Not as long as I'm around! _Her anger quickly morphed into confusion and a bit of fear as her saw that her attacks weren't working. That might not sound odd. Of course, every foe has their pros and cons. Some attacks simply will not work on them because they have mastered the art of defending their body against them. But this was something entirely different. Every time Sakura hit him, Orochimaru's body literally bended in, like it was absorbing the impact. Only a little while ago, when he was in his original form, did her own taijutsu work on him. "Hahahahaha! I'm just getting started, Miss Pink." Orochimaru shuddered violently, flinging Sasuke to the ground down below. He snatched up Sakura to take his place, draining her body of oxygen. Orochimaru was like a part of the living dead, a zombie.

_What the hell was that? Maybe his body only absorbs taijutsu…..All right, it's my turn. Here we go! _"RASENGAN!" Naruto blasted Orochimaru head on. He hadn't attempted to dodge a single attack during the whole battle and he didn't start now. Naruto's attack hit him all right, but he only absorbed it as well. This time, ripples ran all through Orochimaru's body, and he grew.

_What….the….HELL? _Naruto thought that the man had appeared larger after Sakura's attacks, but reasoned that that was clearly impossible. His reasoning was obviously wrong because the truth was clear: Orochimaru was getting stronger and stronger by absorbing attacks.

Orochimaru dropped Sakura in the same manner as Sasuke and reached out for Naruto, who flung himself out of the hand's reach and darted to his teammates still lying on the forest floor. Sasuke was just beginning to open his eyes and wormed his way out from under Sakura's limp body. The sight he opened his eyes to wasn't a welcoming one. Orochimaru's hand was stretching out to imprison Naruto as well. Sasuke knew what would happen.

"Naruto! Don't let him catch you too! He'll let you go, but only after he's drained your chakra!" The genin was still on the ground, too weak to get up. Sakura hadn't even reopened her eyes yet. She was still fighting unconsciousness as Sasuke had previously done. It didn't last long, but with all of his chakra drained…Well, anyone would be helplessly weak. He tried to stand, but his legs only wobbled, and he ended back up on the dirt floor.

Naruto didn't miss a beat. He heard Sasuke's words loud and clear without slowing down. He was at his maximum speed. However, the hand was much faster. Naruto kept pushing on, but he'd only been running for seconds, and he realized it was futile. After all, even if he maintained this speed he'd get caught, and he would slow down as time progressed. _I wonder if he could absorb Kyuubi's massive chakra amounts as well._ He feared. That would be a disaster. But either way, this was shaping up to be a real nightmare. The hand of Orochimaru moved closer and closer he felt its fingertips stroke his back as it moved closer. Soon it would all be over. Once he was drained too, all that would be left for Orochimaru to do would be to finish them. Use them as vessels. Eat them for lunch. Whatever appealed to him. Naruto didn't care to picture it. Once he was dead…Well, he wouldn't have any say so. He really didn't have any now.

"No..."Sasuke muttered, holding Sakura tighter.

Naruto's thoughts broke free of the negativity that comes with an impossibly inescapable death. "I'm not giving up! If you're going to kill me! I won't run!" he called, turned back towards Orochimaru and his stupid hand. He threw a demon wind shuriken at the arm, aiming to pierce it in a final tempt of desperation. It merely bounced off though. He really didn't expect a lot more. What did anyone expect really? If a rasengan wouldn't inflict any damage, a dumb shuriken definitely wouldn't. _Even if I could avoid his stupid hands….even if he wasn't attacking at all, I'm not sure if we could ever figure out how to attack him! It's like he's immune to death in this form!_

Orochimaru let out a loud smirk at the useless attempt. "This is the end of the line!" The huge fingers began to curl around Naruto. Only a thin space of air was left between them and his body and they were closing in fast. Gulp.

There was a loud rustle in the forest. A thumping sound of heavy feet accompanied it. Suddenly, a huge toad dove into the extending arm, bending it like a slingshot string. The fingers uncurled and Naruto landed on his butt on the forest floor, with his life and chakra still remaining. Who else has a toad like that? Of course it was Jiraiya!

"Orochimaru's second form, eh? He might be immune taijutsu, ninjutsu, genjutsu, and weapons now, but I bet I know one thing that can still get to him. Something you kids don't quite know how to use yet; summoning. Yep, my toads will take care of this!" He flashed Naruto a grin.

"But how do you know that, old pervy sage?"

"Why does it matter how I know it? The point is I know it, right? Now get yourself out of here! Until you're considerably stronger, you three are no match for this one! Although, it is admirable that you could kill off his first form and were brave enough to challenge the second. I like that." he praised.

(Anime sweat drop!) There was no was Naruto was going to admit that Orochimaru was extremely weakened when they killed off his first form and that they didn't have a choice but to battle him a second time. Sure, they were brave genin, but it's not like they were even chounin yet. Although, it was clear that they had potential. It's not like Jiraiya didn't expect as much anyway. If there wasn't some sort of handicap that worked to the squad's favor and they accomplished all those battle victories…..Well, they would be way stronger than the legendary sanin were at their age. He chuckled for a moment.

But there wasn't time for nostalgia. Jiraiya put his mind back in his battle that lay ahead. "Hello, old friend." Of course, his old teammate and fellow sanin was the biggest traitor that perhaps ever lived. Jiraiya was best suited to take him on out of anyone, except Tsunade, the third sanin. She knew his old tricks as well.

Knowing he was right, Naruto looked to his right to see that Sasuke had finally stood once again, although still a bit shaky, since his body had only recovered a sliver of his chakra. Sakura was awake now, but weaker, as she was drained after Sasuke and had had less time to recover. Kakashi was there. He obviously arrived the same time Jiraiya did, and picked Sakura up in order to carry her. Naruto ran over to join him.

"Kak"-"Let's get moving. We'll talk later." Kakashi cut him off before he could get a single word out. The three guys jumped up into the trees. "Are you sure you've got this on your own Jiraiya?" He called out to the sanin.

"Of course," he grunted. Indeed, his toad was giving Orochimaru a beating. Jiraiya moved swiftly and frequently, steering his toad with him as well. This way, the toad itself was taking almost all of the hits. Orochimaru's body was so enlarged and the toad was a much bigger target, so with its body moving in that way, it was all but impossible to land a single hit on Jiraiya. It was a brilliant move. "Who knows if he'll die after this, but he won't set foot in Konoha," he assured them of that.

"Don't be s-s-s-soooooo s-s-suuuure, my little toad! Fighting with you is the most fun I've had in ages! Let's prolong it, shall we? I needed a good challenge!"

"Ok then, off we go!" Kakashi said, marking off the Orochimaru's words as psychotic crap. He wasn't he one who had to deal with him today. His time was coming, as much as everyone feared him. Someone would get him back sooner or later.

They all jumped from tree to tree; making steady ground between them and the battle they left behind. "So how did you know where to find us Kakashi-sensei?" Naruto asked.

"After so much time had passed and we still didn't have any word at all from anyone, we scraped up what little forces we had a rounded up a search team as soon as Jiraiya and I returned from our missions," he explained while continuing to move back towards the Leaf Village. "We happened to come across Shikamaru. He informed us that all of the others engaged into battle with Orochimaru's minions, and that they really were a force to reckon with. His injuries were minor, but still needed to be checked out, so we sent him back home to go to the hospital. It looks like you've all been through a tough time. When he told us that you were attempting to continue on to Sasuke's whereabouts, and were most likely going to end up in one of his hideouts, we went in pursuit after the three of you, sending other ninja that were with us to scout out the others."

_Are some of them dead because of me? _Sasuke was struck with the fact that this was his fault once again. "Are they all alive?"

"Well, we don't know yet. The only one I've seen is Shikamaru."

Sasuke looked toward the ground. Sakura had opened her eyes minutes ago, but they were so deep in explanations, that none of them noticed and she was busy listening to them speak. She wanted to be filled in too, of course. Now that it was winding down, she spoke up. "Kakashi-sensei, I can walk now. Please put me down."

Sasuke looked at her for strength as he saw that the Leaf Village was up ahead. Would he be welcomed home or driven back out? After all, he could have very well played a part in many ninjas' deaths. And he was a traitor, if only for a few hours. He decided to go there. What would await him in the Leaf Village? The citizens had every right to punish him in any way they chose to. Though none of them used their voices, the four ninjas' tension spoke for them.

_Would bringing Sasuke home only result in him being outcast again? Or perhaps even worse things were in store for the Uchiha boy?_

Authoress's Message: Hi guys! Remember me, Ninja Fox of the Fire? Welcome back, old friends. Nice to meet you, new readers. Sorry it took me so long again to update again this time…I've had so much on my plate here lately that I haven't had time for much of anything. Most of it hasn't been fun. But I digress. I'm back and have found my love for fanfiction and this fic once again! **Expect the next chapters to be up real soon, believe it! Not to mention new fics of mine that are in the works! **I'm looking for 10 more reviews this time, please and thank you. So…**THE NEXT CHAPTER DEDICATION GOES TO THE 55****TH**** REVIEWER!**

**REVIEW OR I WILL KILL EVERYONE OFF EXCEPT OROCHIMARU AND HINATA! THE CUTE, INNOCENT GIRL WILL BE THE ONLY ONE LEFT, SO SHE WILL HAVE TO BE HIS VESSEL! WOULDN'T THAT ABSOLUTELY SUCK? AND IF YOU DON'T THINK THAT SUCKS THEN IF YOU DON'T REVIEW, YOU ARE PREGNANT WITH THE TOAD'S BABY AND I DON'T CARE IF YOU'RE A GIRL OR NOT! **Haha. I'm still crazy! ^_^ See you next time and thanks for reading and reviewing!


	7. Chapter 6: Return to the Leaf

Shadows on the Cherry Blossom

Summary: When Sasuke defeats Naruto and Sakura again, still refusing to come home, Kyuubi sends Sakura back in time to go on the Sasuke Retrieval mission. He thinks that if she will, just maybe she can help them bring him home...and back to his original self. (SasuSaku)

Disclaimer: Yeah…um…well…I don't see any piles of money or plastic shurikens lying around, so it's pretty clear that I don't own Naruto. (And I don't have any action figures xD! I do have plenty of manga/anime merchandise though…so I don't have any room to talk. ANYWAY, back on the subject…)

Authoress's Note: And...In about a month's time since the last update…I present the final chapter of _Shadows on the Cherry Blossom_! Yes, yes, it's finally here. (And then an epilogue will follow.) So, I am going to finish the story this summer as promised. You'll receive more info at the bottom as usual. So anyway, on to the chapter dedication…Well… 55 really was too big of a number and I realized that right after I posted the update… ^_^' I should have known, because, sadly, as stories increase in chapters, their review numbers (and hit numbers) usually decline…So my bad! I was going to bump it back to 50, but I only got 49 anyway. Well, what can I say? It'd been a while since an update anyway, and again, I'm sorry…So…*awkward silence* I shall dedicate it to….TAMAKI SUOH FROM OURAN HIGH SCHOOL HOST CLUB BECAUSE HE IS SIMPLY THE CUTEST AND AWESOMEST GUY EVER! Haha. (I'm not a fan girl… ^_^-When she says she isn't a fan girl, she really is at heart! Except when it comes to Sasuke…She really isn't a Sasuke fan girl!) And of course, everything is also dedicated to you guys, my loyal readers! I'm having way too much fun with myself today and the little face doing the talking for me just proves how much of an aspiring manga-ka I am… The crazy ramblings do too… So anyway, before I bore you any more… The 6th Chapter!

**Chapter 6: Return to the Leaf: Death or Homecoming?**

It was night by the time Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura, and Kakashi set foot in the Leaf Village. It was late enough where everyone was at home in their beds, so they were all quite relieved, Sasuke especially. Anyone who leaves their village to serve the likes of Orochimaru would certainly be considered a traitor. However, he was only gone for a day or so before Naruto and Sakura knocked his senses back into him. Would that make a difference in his fate?

Kakashi had been extremely serious the past couple of days, and for good reason. He was still all business. "You three need to get checked out at the hospital. You're physical appearance doesn't appear to be serious, but you've been weakened, they need to check you for internal injuries, and you need to take some time for your charka to be replenished."

The three silently walked in that direction. Sasuke suddenly picked up the pace a little. He knew he would be treated in the hospital, for the doctors and nurses vow to treat everyone. If Orochimaru popped in that would be another story, but that was so absurd of an image it was almost comical. What he was very unsure of would be how anyone else would react if they saw roaming the streets. He needed some time to rest and think things through before having to go through that interview. Of course, he was usually a very monotone, relaxed, and completely serious kind of guy, but if a person didn't feel nervous in his shoes just then they were something else entirely; a robot.

Sakura and Naruto quickened their paces as well in order to remain at his side. They were nervous for their friend as well, probably even more so, but they didn't have any more information than he did. Still, Naruto did have something on his mind… He had only just realized it as they were now out of danger and able for their minds to drift elsewhere.

"You know, Sasuke…They wouldn't have sent us after you if they didn't want you back. I think you'll be ok!" he voiced his opinion.

"Wanted: _Dead_ or Alive," Sasuke quoted. "They would want me back regardless of my well-being. The Hokage would obviously fear even more secrets of the Leaf Village being revealed to Orochimaru. If I was with him long enough, I would inevitably have to feed him some information. The fact is that I wasn't, but I knew that a time would come when I would be. It was my intention to give him the information and whatever else he wanted in exchange for more power. Doesn't that make me just as guilty as if I did it?"

"You weren't thinking clearly, Sasuke." Sakura amended. She didn't want to see him face a punishment as severe as death. He meant so much…Even though he hardly ever acknowledged her, she knew he cared, at least in the slightest. He wasn't open with anything other than killing his brother. The slightest sign of friendship between them were there, and for him, and meant a lot.

"I _was_ thinking clearly! I left with a _plan_ to do and give _anything to anyone_ in exchange for power. The village will not see that as noble." He seethed. There was no point in trying to make it sound as if he'd be forgiven when there were so many points against him. He could just as easily be sentenced. _And I will never get to defeat Itachi if that happens…_

Suddenly, after having that last thought, other emotions came running through Sasuke. He was shocked. This had never happened before, and he didn't know how to describe it at all. It was like those words of revenge were half-empty now. The drive to kill his brother was still there, but so were other things. Was there really more to his life now than just revenge? No! Anything else would only be a distraction! Sasuke wouldn't let things change! He didn't want them to! _I WANT HIM DEAD! __**DEAD!**__ NOTHING ELSE MATTERS!_ He ran, as if speed would carry him away from his new desires that were so unwanted. He burst through the hospital doors. "I was ordered to be checked for internal injuries."

Sakura and Naruto looked at each other in confusion, both unsure of what caused him to snap so suddenly. _He has so much that's happened these past few days…Who knows what's going on in his head? _Sakura reasoned. She shrugged and continued walking quickly behind Sasuke's path. Naruto followed, still curious.

"Whoa, calm down and we'll get you into a room," a nurse ordered Sasuke. She was slightly uneasy since she had no idea of what circumstances Sasuke had returned under. For all she knew, he was forced back to the village against his entire will and this rage was only a reflection of that. He wanted revenge above all else. _If he was_ _forced back, would he kill others in order to escape once more? Was he even forced back at all?_ The nurse had no idea.

Sasuke tried to relax, but he was seething. He didn't even want to think about _why_ he was seething.

The nurse returned. "Your room is number 17-A. Let me assist you to it." It was already quite clear that Sasuke was able to walk, so she just motioned for him to follow. It was a short walk to the room so they arrived quickly. "Lie down and the doctor will be with you shortly."

Sasuke was tired. His pent up rage was starting to ebb, so he lied down on the firm hospital bed. The nurse left once she saw that he would obey orders.

He needed rest, as he was weak from losing so much chakra and going for so long without any sleep or rest at all. His mind had something different in store for him however. The rage was only a way to prevent his real worries from arousing again. He could only hold them back for so long; the newfound desires. He wanted more than killing Itachi now. This journey of hell changed him. It was only slightly, but it still bothered the hell out of him. _It's all I've ever had to live for ever since they were killed… I will kill him and find out the truth. It's all I need! Anything else will get in the way! Nothing else matters! I will remain loyal to my family, unlike him! I don't need anyone or anything else! _He argued with himself. Change…he didn't want it. At least, a part of him didn't. The doctor came in, arousing him from his conflicts. He exhaled a little on the inside, thankful for even the slightest distraction from them. As always, his facial expressions were completely relaxed and monotone. Between the rage, and the few emotional moments at Orochimaru's lair, Sasuke had shown more emotion than he ever did since that violent night when he was only seven.

After a few tests, a physical examination, and the like, the doctor gave his analysis. "You've no internal injuries. Your body is weak from the lack of chakra and you have some external injuries, but it's nothing that won't heal on its own in just a few days. We expect you to stay for a short period of time for more rest." He smiled slightly, causing the middle-aged wrinkles on the outside of his eyes to appear. The man gave off a sense that was warm, and knowing. He was a little familiar, as all the ninja of the Leaf had spent a few nights in this hospital, at the very least.

"Nn," Sasuke's signature grunt acknowledged his health results. There was a lot more that concerned him at the moment. "How are the others?"

"Naruto and Sakura have been evaluated too. I will need to share their results with them as well. Their condition is very similar to yours-nothing serious at all. Against ninja that powerful… as an understatement, I'm very impressed with your squad."

"What about the rest of the retrieval squad?"

"A messenger arrived, stating that they are only just being carried into town as we speak. Most of their conditions are quite critical, so we'll just have to see how things go. They are still alive, to keep on the positive. The staff here will work as hard as we can to insure that they all have a full recovery. Shikamaru arrived hours ago. His arm is broken, but his condition is quite stable."

Sasuke nodded once.

"Well, I'd best be helping out with those other patients," the doctor announced, standing at the doorway. He smiled a little again. He was wise enough to know that Sasuke was concerned, as much as the genin tried to hide it.

Sasuke was so exhausted, but there was no way he could sleep. Could it really be that some of the kids he grew up with died on his behalf? He tried to talk tough, but he would have never been able to kill Naruto. He was used to seeing other ninja die, but he NEVER wanted to see one of his fellow ninja die for him. He could protect himself anyway. His life was only programmed to kill one person and one person only…Most people had more meaning than that. He didn't _want _more meaning.

Even so, more meaning was forcing itself onto him, but he wouldn't let it in…He lied awake thinking for hours. Finally, his body shut his mind down in a desperate need for sleep. It overtook him at last.

How long had he slept before the nurse's voice prodded him awake? It could have been minutes or several hours. Sasuke felt pretty refreshed, but it didn't really feel like he slept for very long at all. The nurse drew some blood and brought him a breakfast of eggs, cooked Japanese-style. "Your friends are waiting for you in the waiting room. It'll be good for you to walk down the halls some and get out of your room. Why don't you go meet them?" she suggested after he finished his meal.

His friends were waiting outside? Who all was in the waiting room? He wasn't surprised when he found Naruto and Sakura sitting there, since their medical conditions weren't serious at all. Shikamaru was a face he hadn't seen yet, but the doctor did say that he only had a broken arm. Sasuke took a seat across from his 'friends.'

"So it's pretty clear that the four of us are doing well," Shikamaru declared in a bored voice.

"What about the others?" Naruto was the first to get the words out of his mouth.

"Choji and Neji almost died last night. Kiba and Akamaru were in a pickle too, but Kankuro from the sand showed up to save their asses. Gaara showed up to help Rock Lee in battle as well, but as you know, Lee was weakened from previously to begin with, so I'm sure he'll have a long stay here. The reason I'm still here… well, Temari helped me out in the fight with Tayuya. Those sound bitches of Orochimaru's are too big of freaks for some genin or chounin to take on alone."

"So do you think everyone will pull through?" Sakura was very concerned, with good reason to be. "Choiji and Neji are the biggest question marks. They're doing a lot better compared to last night, but their conditions are still very unstable."

Sasuke's expressions never changed during all the information swapping. Shikamaru was pissed behind it all. "Uchiha, you know that I hate you, but if my best friend dies because of your dumbass decisions I will make sure that it's over your dead body." No one had ever seen the usually carefree ninja so angry, but Choiji had been his friend for years after all.

They saw Shikamaru's point, but Naruto and Sakura would still defend Sasuke if it came down to it. It wouldn't do any good to start a fight with someone else. Sasuke wouldn't let them do his fighting for him though. Most of what Shikamaru said was pure emotion talking.

"Later," Sasuke walked out of the hospital briskly.

"Wait! Sasuke!" Sakura called after him. "Where are you going?"

He ignored her. He was feeling as strong as he normally did, so who cared if he was released or not? He'd be back later. His plans were to recover as soon as possible, forget all about this whole situation and his other desires, and focus on only Itachi. _Itachi…Itachi…Itachi…_

It was… a shock, needless to say. As Sasuke passed the gate to the Leaf Village, the very person on his mind suddenly appeared in his line of vision. _Itachi? What is he doing here? Wh—it doesn't matter! Today's the day…I will kill Itachi! Kill Itachi! Kill Itachi! Kill…Itachi!_

"Hello, little brother," Itachi mocked in an uninterested tone.

Sasuke could feel the blood boiling in his veins all over his body. He would get his revenge today. He felt it. It would be over at last!

"Gyaah!" He charged Itachi, using his chidori. It had grown more powerful since the last time they fought.

Rule one of fighting: never make the first move unless it's a surprise attack. As soon as Sasuke got within range, Itachi dodged the attack, spun and clutched his brother by the arm, flipping him onto his back. Sasuke coughed up blood. Itachi just laughed. "You're as pathetic as always. I don't have time for this if you're still as weak as an academy student." He walked off as if nothing had even happened.

No… it couldn't be over that quickly. It's not like that one moved finished him! Sasuke had just gotten started. His brother was a fool if he thought his younger brother had gotten _weaker_ since the last time. No he had gotten much stronger…The fury built up inside him and his body started to change and form. His body turned a sickly gray color again. The creepily unnatural wings emerged from his shoulders and a black star shaped scar appeared between his eyes. His hair grew long and stuck up in all directions. Curse mark form level two was back in action. It's not like he could get rid of Orochimaru's marks, and with the power they held, he truly didn't want to.

"If you think this new form is a fashion statement, then you truly are an idiot!" he mocked Itachi in his deeper and darker voice that accompanied the curse mark form. Cockiness also accompanied the form, so it would appear.

Itachi turned his head and peered up at him. "So you actually did gain and little strength. Amuse me with your new-found growth spurt," he replied, smugly cool as always. Itachi slowly turned back around to face Sasuke. "What are you waiting for?" he motioned for Sasuke to come at him. "If you want to kill me, here's your next chance."

Suddenly, the memory from years ago flashed into his mind. It only took a split second. _"If you want to kill me, despise me, hate me, and live in an unsightly way… Run, and cling to life, and then some day, when you have the same eyes as I do, come before me." _The words that his brother spoke… why were he obeying them? Why was he following the orders of the one he hated most?

"Sasu-"Sakura gasped. She and Naruto had chased him after leaving the hospital as well and had just caught up. _It's Itachi again… no… _She feared that seeing his brother again would cause Sasuke to get uncontrollably power-hungry again. Orochimaru might be dead, but maybe Jiriya wouldn't be able to kill him in his second form. What if Sasuke let his emotions of vengeance get a hold of him again and he turned to someone like Orochimaru again? She feared for him. Even if he left her lonely, hurt, and loving him one-sidedly it didn't matter to her. Not as long as he was happy; and he would never find happiness living in that manner.

_Why…? I didn't understand as a child… He's been provoking me to kill him… It's like he __**wants**__me to kill him… Why should I give him what he wants? _For once, Sasuke hesitated before springing.

"Why…should I do as you ask?" he questioned suspiciously.

Itachi laughed softly. "So you've finally grown old enough to have a mind of your own. I was hoping that you'd let my words from so long ago hold you as a prisoner; that you would live your life by them alone. It appears that that won't be the case anymore. No matter. Sasuke-oto… (Oto=little brother) you should kill me because I killed your mommy and daddy in **cold blood**. Don't you still care? Did you decide that they weren't worth enough for you to go to the trouble of avenging them? Have you given up?"

"I never said that. What I want to know is, why do you _want _me to kill you? Why have you tried to provoke me into doing so for all these years?"

Itachi got right in his face. "I see… so the jig's up. You know what I want, Sasuke… Do you really want to know? What I want…are your eyes. I was going to wait until you at least obtained the mangekyo sharingan, but you're obviously too faint-hearted to kill your best friend. You'll never obtain it, so I will take your eyes now. I refuse to go blind."

"Blind? What do you mean, you 'refuse to go blind'?"

Itachi's fingers drew closer to Sasuke's sockets. He was going to gouge his brother's eyes out!

"No! Stop!" Sakura screamed in horror.

Itachi completely ignored her. "It's been about the sharingan all along. When you use such an advanced level of eyes so frequently, as I do, you begin to go blind. If I don't have _replacements_ by several years into the future, I will lose my vision completely. You're the only other sharingan left, foolish little brother. I will take them _now_, before you decide to not ever confront me again. I can always make another best friend to kill. After all, friends are nothing compared to the mangekyo sharingan. This is where you're hopelessly weak. You're too _sentimental_, Sasuke. You could never obtain the mangekyo yourself." He pushed his brother into the gate wall, his fingers still very close to Sasuke's eyes.

Sasuke kept eye contact with Itachi, feeling for his weapon case. He pulled out a kunai and tried to jam it into Itachi's leg. Itachi sensed the attack and quickly slid to the left. Bad move. Sasuke had a handful of shurikens waiting, and Itachi's leg met them. He didn't even flinch or take his eyes off of Sasuke. He was set on getting those eyes. He no longer felt pain. With one hand, he dug out a kunai of his own. He was going to cut those eyes out with it…

"Cha!" Sakura screamed, saddling Itachi. She wrapped her arms around Itachi's, forcing them down in a fierce hold. "Your fight or not, I'm not going to stand here and watch this insane bastard gouge your eyes out!"

Sasuke was shocked. _No…stay out of this! It's not a matter of "my fight only…" _

"Ah, so this pink bitch belongs to you?" Itachi growled.

Sasuke lunged at him. Itachi managed to throw Sakura off, and she did a back flip in midair, landing on her feet yards away. The blood surged through her veins and she breathed loudly, her fury building. Naruto had grown even more alert, but wasn't as quick to jump to Sasuke's aid. Fighting Itachi on his own had always meant everything to Sasuke. He wasn't going to take that away from his friend just yet. Not unless it was absolutely necessary…

The people of the village had begun to gather, gasping at the sight of Itachi Uchiha. The fact that he was fighting his younger brother once again added to their shock and curiosity. Tsunade had been informed by someone who had passed by, and she was now arriving on the scene.

Sasuke had Itachi gripped by the collar. "Not that I couldn't take out this whole village, Hokage and all, but I wouldn't want to put you through another _emotional trauma_ of death, little brother. Causing you more pain isn't worth the effort. Nothing done on your account is worth the effort," Itachi tone was such a calm and careless one to use at a time like that. What else would anyone expect from the eldest Uchiha son? "Don't worry, I'll be back. Be sure to take good care of your eyes for me. Wouldn't want them to go bad…" and with that, he was gone. Itachi was able to use substitution in such way that he was transported somewhere else entirely while leaving the usual substitution behind. He had invented the jutsu himself recently.

As a result, no one in the village had seen or heard of such a jutsu before. They thought Itachi had just used a regular substation, so they were all on edge, waiting for the ninja to reappear. The tension built as several minutes ticked by. Sasuke, on the other hand, knew that his brother wouldn't be returning for now. There was finality in his words that promised he wouldn't be back for a time…but he would return for Sasuke's eyes. He had promised that.

Tsunade finally broke the ice that had frozen all of the villagers. "You three," she motioned to team 7. "Return to your hospital rooms. As for the rest of you, there's nothing more to see here. Return to your homes." The Hokage, however, stayed in the area for a while, her senses alert as she made sure that Itachi wouldn't be returning.

Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura didn't speak as they walked back to the hospital. Many people were still staring at them with an intense curiosity. They wanted to know more. Why was Sasuke back? What he still condemned as a traitor? Should he be considered a traitor? Should he be forgiven? Why had Itachi returned to fight his brother again just now; was the timing of this attack relative to all that had happened lately or just a coincidence? They weren't being nosy exactly… Sasuke had just been… a hot topic lately. Many of the villagers always thought he'd grow up to be a promising and loyal ninja for the Leaf. Now they weren't so sure. Most of them were concerned for him; they meant well.

None of the members of team 7 could sleep at all that night. The nurses all revaluated them, and there were no injuries, but their "needed rest" was impossible to obtain. Sasuke lay wide awake, his most recent confrontation with Itachi being played over again and again in his head. His mind was racing. So much had been revealed to him today. Itachi… wanted his eyes. He would never obtain the mangekyo, even if he could. He wouldn't obtain it since Itachi yearned for him to do so. On that same note, he wouldn't allow Itachi to take his eyes at all. _He won't get what he wants… I'll cut my own eyes out and feed them to the sharks if that's what it takes to keep him from having his way. But it won't come to that. I will keep my eyes and protect this village at all costs._

Sakura tossed and turned all night. The worries from earlier that day had heightened. None of them spoke on the way back from the hospital in order to avoid being overheard, but what if this encounter with Itachi caused Sasuke to draw away from everyone again. Going back to total solitude would only make it easier for him to climb to horrible stakes in his quest for power. Maybe this time it would be even high of a climb that before… _I won't let that happen! Sasuke has learned some terrifying information that could easily drive him to feel a stronger need for power. I won't let him fall back into the darkness! No matter what, his eyes will belong to him alone, forever. Itachi won't win. I'll protect him, because he's my teammate. More importantly, I'll protect him at all costs, because when he's not around, I feel like a raincloud above the city. You can still see some of the beauty of the world, but the gray film causes even the most beautiful sights to be dull and ugly. It's a bittersweet way of feeling. Once the pain would subside after so very many weeks, I would be left with only a small fraction of myself, being able to smile, but with sad eyes. No matter where he went, as long as he was happy, I would always love him, even if nothing was ever returned. Loving him is enough. It always has been. So I won't let something like revenge or someone like Itachi tear his life apart. I won't let anything come so close to completely drowning him in misery ever again. Not like it did his week… No, never again. I swear it upon my life. _

As for Naruto, his thoughts were troubled over the same dilemmas, but again for different reasons. Sasuke was his best friend, his rival. He felt so much like a brother it was unreal. Like Sakura, Naruto wouldn't let Sasuke go back to the likes of Orochimaru just for power, or at all for that matter. He would also protect his friend, but no matter what, he wouldn't stand in the way of Sasuke's fights with Itachi. Naruto knew what it was like to feel pain, and be outcast and lonely. Whereas Naruto's family was taken before he ever knew them, Sasuke's was taken after the bonds had grown strong. Sasuke had once told Naruto that his situation was worse because of that. Naruto felts some emotions that were against that, but a large part of him believed for that to be true. If he had never met Sasuke, his friend, his brother, then Naruto reasoned that it would be worse to have him taken away. Naruto had been able to find out what family bonds felt like through Sasuke, but for Sasuke, who had already felt those bonds, nothing could ever quite replace or compare to the bonds that were formed with his parents. Naruto understood why Sasuke wanted revenge. It wasn't Naruto's style to hold on to things, but Sasuke was quite different and also had his mind twisted on that matter as a small child. If Sasuke had aid in killing his brother, Naruto knew that he would never feel fulfilled or like he had honored the memory of his family. However, now that the reasons why Itachi had twisted Sasuke's mind had been revealed, Naruto also feared that it would cost his friend his eyesight. After all, Itachi possessed forbidden and magnificent powers. Sasuke wasn't strong enough yet. Naruto wasn't sure if anyone he knew was strong enough to take Itachi on and live to tell the tale… Not at this point.

At six the next morning after team 7's sleepless night, they all received the same information from their nurses after breakfast.

"The Hokage has summoned you. She is in her office. You should go to her now." Sasuke began to walk out of the hospital doorway.

"We're right behind you!" Sakura called. She and Naruto quickly caught up. They were all pretty sure of what was going to take place next. Sasuke's fate would be determined. They were all anxious, but Sakura was the most worried, for Sasuke's future meant more to her than it did to Sasuke himself, and even Naruto. It wasn't for selfish reasons. Yes, when he was unhappy, she was unhappy, and likewise. However, if she were miserable regardless, she would still want him to be happy, no matter what.

They were standing outside Tsunade's door now. There was just a slight hesitation. Sakura lightly touched his shoulder. "No matter what, we're with you. She knows it. After all, she summoned us all together."

He nodded. "Thank you." _If I'm banished, you won't be going with me, although I know you'll try. If I'm executed, I would let you die alongside me. No… This wasn't your choice. _He knocked, and Tsunade opened the door. She seated them all in front of her desk.

"First things first; tell me _exactly_ what happened with Itachi yesterday." Tsunade narrowed her eyes.

Naruto and Sakura recounted Sasuke running out of the hospital, but he pretty much explained everything else himself. Tsunade nodded from time to time, taking everything in.

"Under what circumstances have you returned to this village, Sasuke?"

Team 7 all told the story of how the whole Sasuke retrieval mission went down.

"I didn't want to see my friends die before my eyes, and on my account. I realized Orochimaru's true use for me when I took action to protect them. I refused to be taken as a vessel. I wanted…..to return to the Leaf Village in the end. I thought that if I forced myself into this situation, I wouldn't be able to turn back and I would gain the power that I so desired; the power that I was provoked into wanting. But I was wrong. I still looked back, and here I am," Sasuke layered it on a bit thick; trying to arouse some sympathy in the hopes that he would be accepted back. However, all that he said really was true.

Tsunade got an even more serious look on her face. "Uchiha, we understand here in the Leaf of the ways you we're not deceived…but rather emotionally swayed by Orochimaru. However, the many of the higher level ninja and I have already discussed this situation."

_Oh, please let Sasuke stay here…Please keep his well-being in mind. I know what he did was wrong, but please…_Sakura prayed. Naruto fidgeted.

Sasuke was like stone waiting to be cracked. "If you ever set foot outside this village again with intentions even remotely like the ones you've had this past week, you will be _killed_." Tsunade narrowed her eyes. "Normally anyone would be after such a situation, but we took pity on you as you are young and were toyed with."

Ouch. Burn. Sasuke's eye twitched.

_But he'll get to stay then, right? _

"Don't think you won't get off without any punishment though. You will be forced to work twice as hard in training and helping out through the village for one year. You won't have the free time to be tempted into the likes of Orochimaru. That's the only good thing that will come from this on your behalf. Now on mine…less work for me!" She gave him a big, greedy smile. Shizune knocked, bringing in another huge stack of paperwork. "Now out you three; I've got more papers to fill out! She dropped her head onto the desk in fatigue…and laziness (Well, at least when it comes to paperwork.)

"Yeah, Sasuke! You know I'd never let you get your butt kicked out of this village or whatever!" Naruto yelled as they were leaving. Other ninja were staring. (Uh…I really don't think he could have helped that, but ok Naruto. :P)

"You've got to be so much happier here, Sasuke. We'll make sure of it!" Sakura smiled sincerely. She truly wanted him to be, more than anything else. When he was in the hospital so long ago, she bought him daises, unlike all the other girls, who bought him roses, because she truly wanted him to get better rather than fall in love with her that day. That's what love is. It's placing someone's well being above your own. Sakura had grown out of that childish world of Sasuke fandom and actually fell in love and cared for him now. She couldn't be strong if he wasn't happy, because she didn't want to be anything if he wasn't in a good place. Something like that is undying. Something like that is only found once in a lifetime.

For the first time in a long while, Sasuke really was glad to be there again. He felt like...he finally belonged. It was the first time he ever wanted to belong. It was the first time he ever wanted to be something other than the avenger. Only time would tell if vengeance would beat out his newfound happiness. Both were there. He was still one to hide all emotion and such, but Sakura could tell. She knew him too well.

Only time would tell... a lot of things.

Authoress's Note: By my calendar, it's before summer's end and only about a month's time since that last update. I'll have the epilogue up even sooner, as planned, because I'm so into finishing this fic. I want it to end well. I hope you guys have enjoyed it up to this point. The epilogue will be long, worthwhile, and answer a lot of unanswered questions in your heads. So please read it if you're interested, because it won't be just a piddling thing!

**Thank you so much for reading this, supporting me, reviewing/alerting/faving! I love you guys!**

I'm afraid I've been freaking some people out with my "review threats!" They were just jokes! Ha! I can have a very graphic sense of humor! So sorry! I'll quit with them! Just…if you want to review do. If you don't, you won't anyway. I know one thing's for sure, there will be a 50th reviewer! Yes! Half a hundred! I'll dedicate the next chapter to a reviewer. I'm not sure which number this time…Just whichever review is most entertaining. Talk to me. Give me your opinions and ideas!

Final update next time! See you then! As always,

-Ninja Fox of the Fire


	8. Epilogue: What I Live For

**Shadows on the Cherry Blossom**

Summary: When Sasuke defeats Naruto and Sakura again, still refusing to come home, Kyuubi sends Sakura back in time to go on the Sasuke Retrieval mission. He thinks that if she will, just maybe she can help them bring him home...and back to his original self. (SasuSaku)

Disclaimer: Wishing at 11:11 won't make you own Naruto, so I still don't, and this is my final update for this fic! Ninja Fox of the Fire's Quest to own Naruto: Fail. I still don't own. (For now…lol)

Authoress's Note: Ok, so this chapter dedication goes to…pirateKitten11893, who was the 50th to reviewer. I chose to dedicate it to her, because she's a new face to my list of reviewers and she seemed to really like this fic. To answer your question, pirateKitten11893, I never really considered making a sequel for this fic, but now that you bring it up, I'd say that it's very LIKELY that I'll somehow incorporate a little of this storyline into a future fic. I'll definitely do more Naruto fics. Ok guys…here it is… the final chapter. Epilogue just sounds cooler and it really is an epilogue anyway since it skips over a little time. Just a little though. So, without further ado…

**Epilogue: What I Live For**

Sasuke walked over to the bridge. He had just finished helping load merchandise onto a truck. Manual labor had been a big part of his punishment, and he was already sweating from the heat of summer. Tomorrow he was scheduled to help assist with the ninja academy. _Ugh…_ Sasuke didn't have the patience for small children. Well, that was tomorrow. For this afternoon, he would be teaming up with Sakura and Naruto for further training. They were already on the bridge, waiting for Kakashi yet again. Sasuke joined them.

"How late is he today?" Sasuke scoffed.

Naruto replied, "We've been waiting for half an hour now. It's been a lot worse."

"Well yeah, but who knows how much longer we'll be here waiting…" Sakura sighed.

Sasuke got comfortable. It could be a while.

"I wonder what sort of training we'll be doing today," Naruto's eyes gleamed with excitement.

Kakashi appeared behind his students. "Hello! Sasuke, Naruto, Sakura, today I have a special, exciting training exercise in store for you three!"

"What? What?" Naruto jumped up, ready to go.

Kakashi chuckled. "Today…"

"Yeah? Yeah?" Naruto's enthusiasm was building.

"I want you to wander through the Forest of Death and see what happens! I unlocked the gates, although this won't be your chunin exams. Honestly, I just want to see how you three will act in this situation. Be prepared!" And with his eyes sparkling and a smile underneath his mask, Kakashi was gone.

"What the heck?" Naruto was disappointed. He was really expecting a mission. But then again, how often did a genin get to train in the Forest of Death? Probably never, as it was only used for chunin exams.

_I wonder how Kakashi pulled off getting permission for letting us into the Forest of Death. He sure did look happy…He's definitely up to something… _Sasuke pondered. _No matter. Off we go. _

"But what the heck are we supposed to do in the Forest of Death? Kakashi wasn't exactly specific! What did he mean, 'see how you three will act in this situation'? What situation? What's our objective?"

"A true ninja doesn't need to be told. They adapt to their surroundings and stay alert. The problem will present itself sooner or later." Sasuke began walking in the right direction. The Forest of Death wasn't far from where they were already. Sakura was behind him. "Sensei sure was acting strange though…Well; I guess we'll find out what's going on soon enough." She decided.

Naruto was a little put out as his feet drug on behind them, but he was quick to perk up, as always. "Well, whatever's going on won't be a problem for us! That's right, Team 7's back together again and better than ever! We can take on anyone!"

Sakura smiled. She was so glad to be with the both of them again. _I don't know what I'd do if the retrieval mission failed… I would never be the same on the inside. But that didn't happen. Things are the way they should be. _She felt warm inside.

Truly, Sasuke was happy to be back with him too. The distortions in his mind won over after all of the confusing messages from Itachi and Orochimaru, but the truth was somewhat revealed to him now after his last encounter with his brother. He was glad he wasn't tricked into doing as Itachi wished after all. It was a set up all along…and he almost fell for it. No, giving up his life in Konoha was the hardest thing he ever had to do, but the distortions caused his yearning for revenge to be much stronger, and the village seemed like nothing…most of the time. Now that he was back, he was realizing…but no! The revenge was still there. Even if he was being used…what about his mother and father? How would he ever be released from restoring their honor now? No one could do it, and he loved them so much…

"Here it is, the Forest of Death," Sakura elbowed him away from his thoughts and into the forest's depths.

"What's this?" Naruto inquired, pointing to a letter nailed to the first big tree directly in front of the gate.

"Trees like me...one, two, three. Find them all and what will be will be," Sakura read the ominous message.

"Do you think Kakashi-sensei put this here?" Naruto asked.

"I don't know…It's likely I guess…"Sasuke replied. _That weirdo…_

"So we're supposed to find three other trees…like this one?" Sakura's voice trailed off.

"Great…a needle in a haystack game! Find certain trees in a forest…" Sasuke complained.

"Well, this tree is big… It's actually pretty huge," Naruto observed.

"_Big _tree in a forest…Well, that narrows it down to about half of them!"

"I guess the only thing we can do is get started," Sakura sighed. This was shaping up to be a boring and tedious mission already.

It was uneventful, a bit to their surprise. It was the forest of death, after all.

"Isn't there supposed to be-oh I don't know-threats here?" Naruto remarked sarcastically. "Where's the challenge in this?"

"I told you, this is just a boring needle in the haystack game…" Sasuke murmured.

"Well, at least we don't have to fight! I mean, after all this walking around in circles, we're already going to be tired out…" Sakura amended.

Finally, after over an hour of searching for what seemed to be aimlessly, Naruto called out, "There it is! The first tree!" It had another note attached to it, covered it strange writing that the genin couldn't understand.

The group hurriedly approached it, hoping that something interesting would finally happen. It looked like a stupid regular tree, after all. In reality it was…but this particular one actually did serve a purpose. When Team 7 got close enough to it, the letters glowed and Kyuubi sensed a strange spiritual calling, and appeared before their eyes.

"So you have succeeded," the fox blew away like dust into the wind and vanished. Quickly, images flashed by, like their lives were on replay, or rather, fast forward. Images of the past flew as well as images of the future. Sasuke was returning home with them. Sasuke was fighting with Itachi, his two comrades standing uneasily behind him. Sasuke stood with them on the bridge that day. The members of the retrieval squad arose in their hospital beds, still alive and miraculously recovering. Sasuke, Naruto, and Sakura stood beside one another on many missions to come. The seasons changed in the dim background. These images all passed them by. It was insane! How could this even be happening? It was like a prophecy foretelling the future, and all that the future held was good. Finally, the images rolled to a stop.

"Eh? Do you…think that was all true?" Sakura's voice was shaky. "I mean, some of that stuff has already happened, but…"

Sasuke remained silent. He didn't like having his future foretold. It wasn't true! He was in the power of his own life! He had more choices to make in his life than to either stay in the village or go with Orochimaru. For some reason he couldn't quite identify, it made him very angry to see something that tried to predict his life's story. He wouldn't follow a path that was already set out for him anymore. If he were going to do that, he might as well set out after Itachi again. However, he was relieved that everyone survived that stupid retrieval mission. If that part of it was true anyway…

Naruto opened his mouth. "I don't know some of it"-He was cut off by an ambush of some sort. Blurs of black were flying all around Naruto, undistinguishable. In seconds they were on Sakura and Sasuke as well.

"What are these things?" she cried.

The black blurs circling Sakura all left her after only a few more seconds and all attached themselves to either Sasuke or Naruto, whizzing around the two and battering at them. Sakura was absolutely bewildered. She had never seen such… things before! The two boys were just hitting at them the best they could those first few seconds, but were two slow to make contact. Sasuke then completely focused on one that stood out a little with a few blurry red dots on it. He reached out with his arm as quickly as he possibly could, like lightning, and grasped the thing in his hands. It liquidized in his fist and sloshed to the ground. He was still getting pounded, but he bent down to peer at the black puddle on the ground. As it was lying still, he could make out the red symbol on its back.

It was a mangekyo sharingan. "Sakura, these things are demons," his anguish was hidden behind his calm tone.

They never quit pounding them, although they caused them no physical pain. They were like ghosts running right through Sasuke and Naruto's bodies. They were drawn to the boys' curses. Sakura wasn't near as appealing to them. Lucky her. The creatures entranced the boys, leaving them rooted to the spot. Thinking back to the mangekyo, Sasuke became enraged, breaking free of the trance. "Fireball Jutsu!" The demons liquidized on contact. Sasuke waded through the black puddles, burning every creature in sight. Naruto caught on and released himself as well. Then the two collapsed from shock.

Sasuke and Naruto blacked out. Blacking out isn't like merely fainting. It's a state where you sense what's around you physically, but your mind shuts your body down in order to recover from the shock. They lay there, feeling the cold ground and the oozing black puddles on their bellies. All of the nightmares and horrors of their past and possible ones of their future seeped in through their contact with the demons. It's what they wanted to inflict. They wanted the supreme powers that the boys possessed. The boys could hear Sakura's panicked breathing very close to their bodies. Soon they felt her cold hands on their legs. Their bellies were being pulled across the ground. She was dragging them away from the liquidized demons. Once they were out of the puddles, their minds eased and they fell into a deep sleep.

They were only out for a couple of hours. Sasuke's eyes cracked open first. Sakura jumped. "Sasuke, are you all right?"

No, he didn't feel any physical pain. He nodded his head and grunted out a 'yeah', pulling himself up into a sitting position. Naruto came out of dreamland seconds later. He too was still in a normal physical condition. Even still, what had really happened?

Sakura wanted to know. "What-what did those things do to you?" she asked, wide-eyed with curiosity and still a little shock.

Sasuke and Naruto shot each other a sideways glance. They both knew that they had undergone the same thing. Those _things_ had absolutely tortured them mentally. They feasted on those with ugly pasts, desperately trying to suck out the power contained in those emotions.

Sasuke began to remember the worst part of it all. The creatures brought the image of cherry blossoms blowing through the wind—No. He wouldn't relive it for the third time.

"Sakura, beings like that…I've never seen such creatures before…But it's clear to me that they were trying to use us for something…Trying to torture us first. It's okay now. It's over," Sasuke stood up. "Let's finish this mission."

Sakura's eyes grew a bit wider, absorbing the information. She could tell he was swallowing some emotion there. She tried not to push the matter further, and followed his nearly-silent footsteps.

Naruto had a sudden thought. "Do you think Kakashi-sensei made those creatures a part of this mission?"

Sasuke turned his head to face Naruto, his eyes narrowing. "He _wouldn't_."

He turned his back, all business. The search for the next tree had begun.

After about another twenty minutes of searching, Naruto heard someone whispering his name. At least, they were whispering at first.

"Naruto…Naruto…pssssst…NARUTO!"

"Huh?" The boy wandered off in the direction of the voice. Sasuke and Sakura closely followed. Surprisingly, they found another free with a note attached to it.

_Is this a trap?_ They all grew more alert. This sure was suspicious.

Naruto was suddenly tripped by something in the bush right next to the tree and drug under.

"Naruto!" His teammates reached for him, but the lettering on the note lit up, and a strong wind blew them back. It was impossible to fight it, and they ended up yards away. Sasuke came to painful stop, slamming his back against another tree. He spread his arms and caught Sakura.

For the slightest second, she blushed, but panic surged back. "We've got to help Naruto!"

He quickly released her and they sprinted a short distance before being thrown back into the trees again. The wind was just as strong as before.

The circled the perimeter for another half hour, searching for either a way in, or the cause of the barrier. They found neither. There was no way in and no one to pound over it.

Sasuke made a decision. "We're wasting our time here. The sooner we get done with this mission, the sooner we can get help from Kakashi or something. Who knows, maybe he had something to do with this too. He sure had a strange gleam in his eyes today anyway. There has to be some _point_ behind this mission. Maybe it's to see if we could leave a comrade in a time of crisis or something…No matter what the case, Naruto is strong. He'll be okay." He gave the boy that much credit. Sakura was reluctant, but she nodded and they went on, in search of the final tree.

Naruto was shocked, and looked up at the face that dragged him under. There wasn't one... It was covered by a mask.

Sakura and Sasuke paused, on full alert. They heard something behind them, whistling through the wind, almost like a ghost. The turned their heads to the side and then started to sprint.

The demons were back.

Madly dashing through the forest, Sakura tripped over a tree root. Sasuke stopped and pulled her to her feet, but he really shouldn't have bothered. They weren't after her.

The demons caught up and Sasuke collapsed.

"_You're worthless, little brother."_

"_You'll never be strong enough."_

"_Come with me, I-I can give you s-s-s-strength."_

"_Don't leave me, Sasuke!"_

"Aah!" He awoke, and stopped his ridiculous screaming the moment he realized he was doing it. Sakura released his face; she was holding it as he tossed and moaned in the nightmarish state that he was in previously.

He jumped up, still a bit shaken. "One more tree to go…" The sun was still high in the sky, but it was just beginning to set. "Let's make it before nightfall."

She grabbed his arm and looked him in the eyes. "Are you strong enough to finish this right now?"

He stood up to his full height and regained his composure. Of all the years they spent together, why did the one time he truly lost his cool have to be around her? He brushed it off as if it were nothing. "I'm fine."

She knew that would be his answer. Sakura let her lips form into a little smile, but her eyes still held a little concern. Sasuke pushed himself too hard.

Time lapsed. "There it is! There's the last tree, Sasuke!" It could be seen in the distance. This tree had a bigger note attached than the others; it covered most of the tree, making it visible. She began to run to it in glee. Sasuke swept his hand out in front of her. "Wait, we don't know what we could meet this time. Brace yourself."

She obeyed, and they cautiously approached it. They emerged into a small clearing, with the tree in its center. Sakura trees surrounded the tiny perimeter, and the cherry blossoms were gracefully dancing towards the ground, sometimes pirouetting as the wind breezed. Sakura let out a gasp of awe. The sun was reaching the horizon now.

The glimmer of the note's lettering was reflecting in Sasuke's eyes for a final time. No demons had appeared, but…the cherry blossoms…the shadows in his heart…Sakura beside him…When the sun set it would become night…so like _that _night…He was forced to relive that night when he left her on the bench. It was the night he so longed to forget. He longed to forget it because it was the night he gave into weakness. It was the night he almost turned around. But in the end, through all the other conflicting emotions, it was the night that he almost left her. The sun set, and he grabbed her. She gasped in surprise. This note only caused one thing to happen; fireworks began to go off as darkness fell.

"Sasuke…" her voice trailed off as she met his unreadable eyes. The barriers that blocked the window to his heart faded just enough.

"I've decided…I could never do it over."

He looked at her with a questioning look. _Should I…? Um…My parents…uh…could be watching…_He was so overtaken by emotions for the first time since he was seven that Sasuke stuttered in his mind. Yes, stuttered!

Sakura looked up at the fireworks in the night sky. Pink and blue reflected in her eyes. Sasuke turned her face back towards him. _She's up to Uchiha standards, Mother, Father…_ [But for Sasuke, who had already felt those bonds, nothing could ever quite replace or compare to the bonds that were formed with his parents. or just maybe they could…]Pink melted with blue, and the shadows in Sasuke's heart were no more. He kissed her.

_Time does tell that even if they say so, she'd be the one that would know…_

"I don't know why you waited for me all this time. If you hadn't, I'd be long gone. I'd force myself to not look back. But no matter what I'd always know what you really meant to me. I love you, Sakura." The words felt alien in his throat, but he meant them.

"Sasuke, you didn't have to tell me. I always knew."

_Happing endings, just what did you do? If you're a dream then come true. Stop pretending that what you mean isn't what you say. _

He gave her another confused look.

She laughed. "When we were in real danger, I'm afraid some emotion seeped through."

_Nothing's binding me to this village any more…Or forcing me to be here…I want to be here…I want to be with her…It's not a weakness…It's a choice…The "vision" by the first tree only foretold the inevitable…That I would stay with her because I love her. I __**can**__ love, Itachi just made me forget how. I'm set free. _He thought. _I've won, Itachi. I've beaten you. I've moved on, and you haven't. _

(Song-fic part continues) _Hopeful dreaming, of times before the pain, wishing it was still the same.  
Loving, leaving…  
Round and round and round we go again_

He held her close until the end of the firework show, taking in the sweet aroma of her hair and the cherry blossoms falling into it. When it was over, they basked in the moment until it was well past midnight. The night seemed to last a lifetime and only a moment all at once. They would have remained in that meadow so much longer-words unneeded, must to Sasuke's advantage-but then they remembered.

"Naruto!"

The young boy was still with Kakashi and Jiriya. They were the ones who grabbed hold of him. The three had migrated to the trees just on the edge of the clearing, giving themselves a perfect view of Sasuke and Sakura.

"This is going to be the inspiration for my latest Make-Out Paradise!" Jiriya exclaimed, eating it up.

"Oooh! Now that will be one to read!" Kakashi was getting overexcited for the smut as well.

"What the hell? What was all this about anyway? And now you're talking about Make-Out Paradise? What was the whole point of this stupid training exercise anyway?" Naruto was pretty steamed.

"You and Sakura wanted Sasuke to stay didn't you? Well, he would need to things to insure that: the truth about his brother, and something to make him want to stay here. Sakura was the only thing that he ever truly wanted besides revenge," Kakashi revealed his plot. "There's no guarantee that he won't kill Itachi one day, but now he hasn't something more to live for."

"Well yeah…as long as they'll still be here…But why can't Sakura be happy with me?" Naruto pouted.

Kakashi chuckled. "Wasn't it always obvious that it'd end up this way?"

"Don't worry, kid. Someone will come your way. Love's a fun game!" Jiriya flashed him a crooked smile.

Sasuke kicked them all in the back of the head. Inner-Sakura was seeping through. They were pissed. "What in the hell are you all trying to do?" the couple seethed.

_Walks a-lone, have often led to thinking. My love for you is sinking to what seems an all time low or high, the limits' never ending, and don't you know I'm sending. There's no venture I won't go  
for you. ~Happy endings._

Fin! (French for The End!)

Authoress's Note: So it's finally finished! I LOVED writing this fic and I apologize that it took me so long! I'd also like to apologize that I took a little while to post this final chapter. I have a good reason this time; I've had school essays, school paragraphs, and a letter to the bishop of the Catholic Church to write. As a little side note, I'd like to add that I do think that Sasuke and Sakura will end up together, of course, not this way, but I definitely think he'll come back to Konoha and I think he realizes what she means to him.(I sure hope so!) There are too many hints of it in the series. Way more than NaruSaku in that sense. Go SasuSaku!

Anyway, thanks to all of you guys for reading this until the end! I had such a great time with this! I definitely have a lot of ideas for new fics rolling and they'll be up soon. I'm getting school under control and I really think I might be able to keep on a better schedule for future fics. I KNOW I'll do better! I made it through my first big-time chapter fic, so I've got the experience to plan out future fics better and updates more efficiently. Some future fics include one for Ouran High School Host Club, Harvest Moon, Kingdom Hearts: BBS, Fruits Basket, Tokyo Mew Mew, and very likely a type of spin-off to this fic. Harvest Moon and Ouran High School will probably be up first, as they were promised to a friend and are long overdue. Then either Fruits Basket or Kingdom Hearts, as that's what won the poll.

Reviews for this last chap/epilogue are appreciated! I want to know what you guys think! Sorry if the ending was cheesy! I hate sappy love stories, so I tried to make it more reserved. I hope I didn't totally fail at that! I hope everyone enjoyed this fic as much as I did!

Until next time (which will be very soon!),

-Ninja Fox of the Fire


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